Fresh crises yesterday rocked Giesi Ruling House of Ile Ife, over alleged manipulation of screening of candidates that showed interest in the vacant stool of Ooni, even as the screening committee shortlisted four candidates. The search for the next Ooni has been narrowed to only the Giesi Ruling House which has 7 royal families.
They include; Moniki; Waniki; Luugba; Debooye; Idu; Idu-Ofin and Agbedegbede. National Mirror yesterday learnt that the latest crisis was not unconnected with how the screening committee allegedly manipulated the exercise to favour only contestants from Agbedegbede Royal Family.
The shortlisted names are expected to be presented to kingmakers for onward presentation and ratification of the state government.
All the names purportedly selected were from the Agbedegbede Royal Compound. But in a protest letter addressed to the kingmakers by six of the seven royal families, signed by Venerable Samuel Ishola Ojo from Moniki Roral Compound and Prince Babatunde Olafari Olasaare from Luugba Royal Compound, copies of which were obtained by newsmen, the aggrieved families alleged that the screening exercise was “a one man show.”
They claimed the committee chairman, Prof. Adekanye Aderibigbe, alleged conducted the screening alone. The letter reads part: “Following the recent receipt of the letters from the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, dated 14th September, 2015 and letter from Ife-East Local Government dated 16th September 2015, we the undersigned representatives from the royal compounds from Giesi Ruling House come together to protest the following anomaly: “The composition of the screening committee did not reflect the representatives of the entire Royal Compounds that constituted the Giesi Ruling House, as all members of the committee came from only Agbedegbede Royal Compound to make the committee look as if it is only Agbedegbede alone that constituted Giesi Ruling House.
“List of the contestants from different royal compounds within the Giesi Royal House was not made known to all royal compounds concerned or the public.
“The criteria for screening were not spelt out for all and sundry to be abreast or appraised. History concerning other royal compounds within the Giesi Ruling House has been distorted to pave way for Agbedegbede alone to present candidate(s) to the vacant stool of Ooni of Ife.
“It remain a public knowledge that we had earlier subjected our sons in the race to participate in the screening, hoping that the integrity of the committee members will not give room for suspicious.
Our calmness, cooperation and tolerance should not be taken for granted. We only believe that Giesi should do things differently and amicably to make Ile-Ife greater again.” The aggrieved families therefore urged the kingmakers to cancel the earlier screening and called for fresh one by a new committee that will comprise all the royal compounds in Giesi Ruling House.
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