Soun: What Concerned Princes of Laoye Ruling House say on Prince Ghandi, other
pannigeriannews
3 min read
The recent bombardment of the social media with pictures and stories of one of the Princes of the Laoye Ruling House of Ogbomoso as the chosen Crown Prince has been noticed with increasing concern from members of the public as well as major contestants to the throne of the revered monarchy the Soun of Ogbomosoland.
This is because the action is fraught with grand deceits and lies with the possibility of leading to anarchy and disruption of public peace.
As the saying goes, “Agba ilu ku, ilu baje, Baale ile ku, Ile di ahoro”, the challenge before the ruling house now is that of gross insincerity among some ‘elders’, who for various selfish reasons, have derailed from following the path of honour. The purported “Crown Prince” was never unanimously elected by the ruling house and it was on record that he was not even among the initial eleven names sent to the kingmakers, though that exercise was also rife in controversy due to the gross insincerity involved in the process.
The kingmakers did carry out a ‘kangaroo’ screening in March 2022, where candidates were only asked about their financial status and level of religious tolerance, at the end of which they quickly sneaked the name of Prince Ghandi to Ibadan. This action immediately drew the ire of the members of the Community who threaten to burn down the house of the Areago, the head of the King makers, and the palace if Prince Ghandi is installed as the new Soun. Many elders and stakeholders did not hide their disappointment with the disposition of the kingmakers, especially the emphasis on the financial capacity of whoever is to ascend the revered throne and justifying the stance with bone faced lies about palace expenses and the likes.
This action led to several petitions to the Oyo State governor, Engr Seyi Makinde, and litigations in appropriate courts of justice in the state. It is in the process of awaiting the outcome of all these legal proceedings that we observed, with much disbelief at the bombardment of the social media with pictures of Prince Ghandi Olaoye taken with notable public figures, claiming to be the chosen Crown Prince, not minding the fact that the process is still on-going and inconclusive. This is a ploy to misguide the public and arm-twist the government of Gov. Makinde into acceding to an unpopular candidate who unfortunately has the means to corrupt and criminally influence the system of appointing the new Soun without regards to pristine traditions.
The recent posting of his (Prince Ghandi) pictures with dignitaries and notable public figures is an attempt to scam the masses into believing that he has the right connections to make things work, forgetting the fact that Ogbomoso people are intelligent, self-motivated peole who will not pander their birthright to be enslaved by anyone, no matter how highly placed. Likewise, we are aware of his co-traveller, Prince Suraju Lawal, who as a serving miltary officer, ran to the Sultan of Sokoto for his support.
This is grossly unbecoming of any potential Soun. Do they think Ogbomoso is an extension of the Sokoto Caliphate or any other polico-religious entity? This attests to the level of disdain they have for our traditional values. The level of desperation of these two portends no good tidings for the great Ogbomoso Kingdom.
It is in the light of the foregoing that we, Concerned Princes, wish to inform the general public that the duo of Prince Afolabi Ghandi and Prince Suraju Lawal, though bonafide Princes of the ruling house of Olaoye, do not represent the unanimous decision of the ten branches of the Olaoye Ruling h
House as the process that they claim to have emerged from is fraught with irregularities, fraud and inconsistencies.
We kindly want His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde, Ogbomoso indigenes home and abroad, and the general public to please take note and help keep the peace.
Written by:
Concerned Princes of Laoye Orumogege Ruling House
