Many people could remember where they were the day about 15 armed men forcefully gained entry into Ijoko town in Ado Odo Ota local government, shooting sporadically at the residents and leaving a trail of blood and destruction in their trail.
Tuesday, December 23rd began like every other day in Ijoko -a small town about 100 kilometers from Lagos- most of the residents work in the neighbouring Sang-Ota or in Lagos.
The invaders
Then at 5:30 pm, when the youths and the working class were away and the elderly enjoyed a lazy evening outside their porch, tragedy struck. Prince Muhammed Ogunseye remembered exactly what he was doing when chaos began. “I was sleeping in the palace when people rushed into the palace shouting that some people were shooting at the gate. I got up and heard sporadic shooting. They were just shooting at everybody. Immediately I organized all the people in the palace and shielded them to safety, I also ran and hid myself because they (the attackers) were so many,” he said.
According to eyewitnesses, the armed men approached the gates of the town and seized it, passersby and residents scrambled for safety while the attackers continued shooting indiscriminately wounding some people in the process. The palace of the Onijoko of Ijoko, Abdulazeez Kolapo Ogunseye was about 1,000 meters from the gate. In the palace were vassal chiefs of the Onijoko, who were having a meeting though Ogunseye himself was absent.
The attackers took over the main streets of the town and began to vandalize properties along their path. Two cars were burnt down while several others were destroyed, houses and shops whose owners ran away in panic were not left out as they were also vandalized.
The attackers seem to have a target: The palace. According to some eyewitnesses who could not be named for fear of a reprisal attack, the attackers descended on the palace and began to destroy it. A guard dog resisted the uninvited guests and it was shot, the dog died instantly. “I heard them asking for petrol, they said they were going to burn it down and kill whoever they met in the palace,” one witness said.
But Muhammed said he had a good look at the faces of some of the attackers. “They began to vandalise the palace and then entered the new building at the back and destroyed all the windows and everything they can lay hands on. I saw one guy called Gafari another one called Sir Kay. There were Lukman and Monsuru Matanmi too,” he said.
The attackers were not done, after destroying the palace, they set it ablaze and watched it burn for about 30 minutes. Muhammed said he called the police for help from his hiding place and when the assailants left he tried to put off the fire before the arrival of the Police and the Fire Service. It was too late; the palace was completely razed along with all the important documents in its archives.
The assailants withdrew from the palace but continued their murderous rage. In Itabo, they burnt to the ground the house of the Baale, Sikiru Tijani. The Baale of Surulere, Ojelabi Atanda also had his house razed while a car belonging to his friend was burnt. In Ogba-Ayo area, a house belonging to the community leader, Alhaji Ike Anobi was burnt while the car belonging to Baale Alabede of Pare Ifelodun was also razed.
But the brutality of the attack was best manifested in the account of an eyewitness who had a near-death experience with the assailants. “I was working in my shop when I heard the gunshot, I quickly locked my store and stayed inside. Then I heard them saying they will burn the palace and kill anyone they met inside, they were talking on the phone. They opened my store and forced me out and then grabbed my son and threatened to kill him. I was begging them that he was my only son, then they left him,” the eyewitness said.
A royal rumble
Muhammed and many of the witnesses put the blames of the attack on Fatai Matanmi, a man who is in dispute with Ogunseye over the kingship of Ijoko town. Since Ogunseye was installed as king in 2006 by the Olowu of Owu, Matanmi has consistently maintained his opposition to his rule claiming he is the rightful king of the Ijoko people.
But the camp of Ogunseye maintained that Ijoko belongs to the Egba and Matanmi as an Awori, is ineligible to the royal stool. In fact, they claimed that the population of the Awori is so negligible in the town that Matanmi’s family is the only Awori clan remaining.
The Ogunseye’s said after a bloody battle in 2008 in which no less than eight chiefs lost their lives, Matanmi had relocated from the town. “Since 2008, Matanmi had relocated from this town because the people rejected him. He claims he had court judgment while the case is still on appeal before the court. When he was away, the town had peace, then about four months ago, himself and his boys resurfaced in this town and they have started unleashing mayhem on the people,” one of the chiefs said.
There has been no love lost between the two families. Matanmi himself has not been quiet; he continues to insist that he is the rightful king of Ijoko and that he has over 77 court judgments to back up his claim. When The Nation contacted Matanmi, he was furious when Ogunseye was referred to as the king.
“Who is the Kabiyesi?” he asked in a voice full of contempt. “You are a journalist and you should not mislead people, did you ask him proof of his kingship? Were you there when he was crowned, if not then you should ask for proofs like his government letter and gazette.”
He continued in anger, “He made himself king because he had no proof. This is not a drama where actors play king and you humour them with a crown. You should not deceive the public for your sake and your papers. I also worked for 10 years at Daily Times in the Editorial Department; you should have asked him for the proof that he is truly a king,” he fumed.
Matanmi also claimed to have a court judgment to take possession of the recently razed palace. “The house in Ijoko belongs to me, I obtained a judgment against them that gave the house to me, so he (Ogunseye) does not have a house.”
But when asked why he has not been able to execute the court judgment and take possession of the house, he said the judgment covers about five villages. But if the kingship tussle had remained at the level of litigation and reason, maybe the peace which has now eluded the town would not.
Muhammed said Matanmi had written a petition against him alleging a threat to his life. He was questioned by the police and released. “Kabiyesi had said this is a stock-in-trade for Matanmi whenever he was to attack us. He would precede such attack with a petition against a member of the family and then attack. In this case, the attack came the next day after the petition was written.”
But Matami denied any involvement in the attack. He told our correspondent that he was not in town when the incident happened. “What I learnt was that it was Ogunseye that came to disrupt the annual prayer for one of our aunts. They were led by one Muhammed and Ibrahim, they beat up my people, so they were the aggressors,” he said.
But Muhammed denied the allegation: “Nobody attacked Matanmi, I didn’t lead anybody to his house, it is all a lie and that is not the first time he would say it. I was in the palace on the day he was talking about; there is no truth in it.”
But what is true is the uncovering of a member of the gang that allegedly carried out the attack. Members of Ogunseye’s family said they found two identity cards at the scene of the attack belonging to the same person: Kayode Bambi who allegedly led the rampaging gang to
Ijoko.
One of the identities which was shown to our correspondent belongs to the Vigilante Service of Ogun State (VSO), with the name and picture
of Kayode Bambi. It has registration number, VGN/OGN/08/003630 with the designation “Operation Officer.” The other is a voter’s card with the name Bambi, Kayode Ajala with the residence of the holder at Ilupeju Estate, Agoro.
The Ogunseye family believes this has proven beyond doubt that Matanmi was behind the sundown attack on the town.
Starting afresh
But the tussle has degenerated into chaos and destruction. Lives have been lost and properties destroyed. When The Nation visited the community on December 25, the anxiety in the air could almost be cut with a knife. From the gate of the town, armed policemen not less than 15 were positioned strategically. The police men from the Ota Division had been on a 24-hour surveillance since the day of the attack. But despite the presence of the armed security, the people were afraid.
Babatunde Tajudeen, Baale of Okesuna said the thugs were still in the town armed with guns and other dangerous weapons and still threatening to come for another round of attack. This has set the people on the edge and every stranger is viewed with suspicion. Those who spoke to The Nation did so on account of strict anonymity while a large number refused to grant any request for interviews.
“We don’t want Matanmi in this town, he has caused so much harm and he can never be a king here. His boys are still around in his house, if you go there you will see them displaying guns in the open. They harass and threaten citizens and there is nobody to save us,” a resident, who pleaded anonymity, said.
But it is a new start for Ogunseye and members of his extended family.
His palace and all the personal properties of his family members were lost. “We now have to start all over again, we had only the clothes that we wore on that day because the rest were burnt, we had to look for money and get new clothes,” one of the members said.
On Christmas day, the family refused to let the tragedy dampen the mood of the season, the women made use of whatever tools they could find to prepare meal for the family and visitors. In the background, the smell of the burnt palace still lingered in the air and with an enthusiastic spirit, the family confronted their woe.
An uncompleted palace which was being built behind the old one now serves as a refugee camp for the family. Whatever property they could salvage had been piled into the rooms and in the night, they sleep, at the mercy of the elements.
Oba Ogunseye came in around 3pm followed by some of his aides. He was dressed in a simple buba and an abeti aja cap on. He walked slowly through the passage of his burnt palace and on reaching the backyard began to pray for the women of the palace who shouted an enthusiastic ‘amen’.
“Nobody should greet me in sorrow, there is no need for that, I assure you things will only get better from now on,” he said after he had taken his seat under a canopy which serves as a temporary palace.
Ogunseye practised what he preached, he shook hands with everyone and encouraged them, some of them expressed fear of another attack. Their fear proved not unfounded because on December 26, armed thugs invaded the town again. Before they were repelled from the town by the police, they burnt down the houses of three Baale as they initially promised.
Muhhamed said: “They came today again and burnt the houses of three
Baales’ in Itabo area but the police later repelled them. The police searched our house and that of Matanmi and confiscated about 50 guns from them. They also arrested Matanmi’s thugs and took them away.”
The Police Public Relations Officer of Ogun State Command, Muyiwa Adejobi, a Deputy Supritendent (DSP) confirmed the arrest saying guns and charms were recovered. Those arrested have been transferred to the Command Headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta for further investigation.
According to Adejobi, “Following the recent crises that rocked Ijoko Otta town in Ado Odo Otta Local Government area of Ogun State, the Ogun State Police Command has embarked on proper investigation by pouncing on the perpetrators of the crises that lasted for days and arrested nine suspects with arms and ammunition.”
He added that “some suspected hoodlums had been on rampage in connection with the lingering Onijoko Obaship crises and set ablaze some houses while several people were injured.”
The Police spokesperson also said a team of police detectives raided the palaces of both Ogunseye and Matanmi. “This investigation prompted the police teams from the Department of Criminal Investigation, Police Mobile Force, coordinated by the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of department of operations Ogun State Command DCP Egberebi Egbuson to conduct search and raids on the palaces and premises of the two disputing rulers, Oba Montanmi and Oba Ogunseye on 27th December at night time, where nine suspects were arrested and 12 locally made single barreled guns, two pump action guns,191 cartridges, two cutlasses, one axe, charms and masquerade clothing were recovered in the palace of Oba Montanmi and one butt of a locally made single barreled gun was recovered in the palace of Oba Ogunseye.”
It was also gathered that the Ogun State Police Command had invited both Matanmi and Ogunseye but it was learnt that it was only Ogunseye that honoured the invitation.
Meanwhile, residents are pleading with the government to step into the matter and resolve the lingering crisis. “The government should help us, this problem is too much, we need protection in this town, that is the only thing we are asking from the government,” Muhammed said.
The incessant attack has taken its toll on the town. It is a major setback for the town which hosts two major industries, Dangote Salt and Union Dicon Salt. Ijoko is also a major railway terminus and its close proximity to Lagos and Ota makes it attractive to investors.
“People are living in fear and the residents have complained to the government, those who have houses are moving out en-mass for fear of being killed, the morale of this town is low and people are not happy,” one of the chiefs said.
When will the government stop this living in fear for the residents and restore sanity?
