Traditionalists Demand Isese Lover As Next Alaafin

• Yusuf Oketola

The Isese Welfare Association, aka Ìsese Assembly, on Saturday, called on the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, and the Oyo town kingmakers to pick a credible candidate among the contestants for the throne of the Alaafin of Oyo.

OSUN DEFENDER had reported that the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, died on April 22, 2022, at 83 and the stool had been vacant since then.

A statement by the group’s National Coordinator, Aderemi Ifaoleepin, and Secretary-General, Ifagbenuola Popoola, in Ibadan, the state capital, called for a choice of Alaafin who would not only openly identify with the Yoruba indigenous religion, but also protect the interests of practitioners among other faiths.

IWA further urged Makinde and the Oyo-Mesi to speed up the selection process and fill the vacant throne, as whoever mounted the throne would be globally revered among other traditional rulers in Nigeria.

The association said, “We implore the Oyo Mesi, who are the kingmakers to make sure that whoever is selected or chosen to be the next Alaafin of Oyo must be Isese-inclined cum Isese lover; and who is ready to openly identify with Isese as a Yorùbá indigenous religion.”