No fewer than 7 persons have been killed, others injured in a clash between suspected hoodlums and Army soldiers in Ikire, the headquarters of Irewole Local Government Area of Osun State.
It was gathered that the trouble started when some youth, calling for the removal of Akire of Ikire, Oba Olatunde Falabi (Lambeloye III), stormed the palace and drove the monarch out of the place.
The protesters were relying on the Supreme Court judgment of 2014 that it was not the turn of the Falabi’s ruling house to produce the Akire and also a similar judgment by the state high court in few months ago.
Efforts by men of the Nigerian Army to disperse the irate youth and bring normalcy to the town created more tension as they started shooting sporadically.
The youth in return started hurling stones at the soldiers and ambushed them after, which they snatched their rifles.
A resident of the area told newsmen that failure of the youth to return the rifles made the soldiers to call for reinforcement in the process, which at least two residents of the town were killed.
He said the gunbattle led to the death of many residents of the town including some family members of the prince who is purportedly causing chaos in the ancient town.
Another resident who refused to have his name in print said some armed hoodlums sacked the palace, beat several chiefs and their drivers to stupor and ransacked the whole building.
He said:
“Around 10am today, October 26, 2020, some armed hoodlums sacked the palace, beat several chiefs and their drivers to stupor and ransacked the whole building. It took frantic efforts of the security personnel to whisk the royal father away.”
Another young man by name Baba Ayo said:
“No fewer than seven people have been killed including a soldier. When those hoodlums sacked the palace, six soldiers were sent from the nearby Ede barracks to placate the tensed situation and appeal to the miscreants.
“On getting there, the hoodlums attacked the soldiers, stoned and beat them. Two of them managed to escape but luck ran out of the remaining.
“Their rifles were snatched, their uniforms were taken off and their vehicle was totally destroyed. One of them was later reportedly killed.”
