MRS. FOLASHADE OJO TINUBU MUST KEEP HER HANDS OFF BENIN MARKETS.
In recent days, reports have surfaced that Mrs. Folashade Ojo Tinubu, daughter of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the self-acclaimed or surrogate IYALOJA-GENERAL of Lagos, has extended her ambitions beyond her immediate domain into Edo South Senatorial District. Specifically, she has pronounced the imposition of an “Iyaloja of Edo State.” This brazen act is both illegal and an affront to the cultural sovereignty of the Benin people.
Let it be made clear: Mrs. Folashade Ojo Tinubu has no business, no authority, and no legitimacy in the management of markets across Benin land. The office of “Iyaloja” is alien to Benin tradition and culture. In Benin, and across Edo South, we have only one recognized institution for market leadership the IYE-EKI, who by tradition and by blood must be a Benin woman, a daughter of Edo South. This is the sacred order decreed by our ancestors and reaffirmed by our revered monarch, the Oba of Benin.
For too long, Mrs. Ojo Tinubu has been accommodated and tolerated, largely out of respect for the office of her father. That tolerance, however, must not be mistaken for acquiescence to authority. Her current overreach is nothing short of hawkish, divisive, and satanic in intent an attempt to undermine the customs and institutions of a proud and ancient people.
We must remind the governor of Edo State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, that the Benin people will not fold their arms in the face of such cultural aggression. Through this medium, we put the governor on notice: Edo South rejects the imposition of any “IYALOJA” in our land. If the government of Edo State, by action or silence, condones this illegality, it will amount to a direct betrayal of our heritage and of the words of our revered Oba, who has unequivocally declared that “IYALOJA” is alien to the Benin Kingdom.
Mrs. Ojo Tinubu and her crew must be told in no uncertain terms: Benin markets belong to Benin people. They are governed by Benin customs, not imported institutions from Lagos or elsewhere. The integrity of our culture is not up for negotiation, nor shall it be surrendered on the altar of political ambition.
As a people, we stand firmly behind our monarch, the custodian of our traditions, and we shall defend the sanctity of our culture against every hawkish incursion, no matter how highly placed the instigator may be.
Our MESSAGE is simple: BENIN MARKETS are for Benin people. Respect our tradition. Respect our Oba. Respect our sovereignty.
Felix ONI (Ikpoba Okha)
