Son of the Ooni of Ife weds today despite strong rumours of his father's death

The families of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, and the former National Emergency Management Authority, NEMA boss, Mrs Remi Olowu, will, today, join their son and daughter in holy matrimony in Lagos despite the rumoured death of the paramount ruler.

It was learnt that the two families resolved to proceed with the wedding programme after due consultations with friends and relations.



Meanwhile, there was disagreement between residents of Ile-Ife yesterday on the reason behind the on-going Oro festival in the town which entered its third day today.

Many people of the ancient town, who spoke to newsmen , believed the announcement of the festival may have been preparatory to the formal announcement of the passage of Ooni.

But some residents insisted that the festival had been scheduled to hold long before Sijuwade’s reported demise.

Media attention has been on the town since the reported demise of the Ooni on Tuesday in a London hospital.

Speaking to newsmen in Ile-Ife, a traditional title holder, who preferred anonymity because he was not authorised to comment on the matter, listed Oro, Olojo, Orunmila, Edi, Oranmiyan, Esu, Obatala among others as some of the festivals celebrated in the town annually.

The chief insisted that the ongoing Oro festival had nothing to do with the “rumoured death of Oba Okunade Sijuwade.”

According to him, the ongoing festival will end on Thursday. He explained that while it lasts, there will be no restriction of movement, except for young and old females that must not see the procession of Oro adherents.

However, the door at the back of the Ooni’s palace, that normally should open at the death of the monarch, remained shut yesterday.

But a palace source explained that “since the door remains permanently closed, it means the monarch is alive.

“The closure of markets for business and ringing of a special gong to announce the death of an Ooni are two major significant signs to indicate that the monarch has joined his ancestors and these are yet to be done”.

“These have not taken place and so our belief is that our Oba is still very much alive”, he added.