The Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Saliu Adetunji, has stopped this year’s masquerade dance for Ibadan high chiefs.
The annual festival is scheduled to begin on Monday (today).
The tradition was instituted in 1976 during the tenure of late Oba Gbadamosi Adebimpe.
Masquerades pay homage to selected high chiefs in their family compounds with the permission of the Olubadan during the festival.
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The decision to stop the annual festival arose from a two-hour security meeting Oba Adetunji held with stakeholders at his Popoyemoja place over the weekend.
A statement by Adeola Oloko, the Personal Assistant/Director of Media and Public Affairs of Oba Adetunji: “As the chief custodian of our culture and tradition, I also owe it a duty to work in tandem with the law enforcement agents not to turn the celebration of our custom and tradition into a theatre of war.”
Oba Adetunji appealed to other stakeholders to cooperate with law enforcement agents by operating within the ambit of the law.
Those at the meeting were: A. O. Abimbola, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, who represented Oyo State Police Commissioner; Dan Miller, another ACP of the Criminal Investigation and Investigation Department at Iyaganku in Ibadan; B. T. Agboola, who represented the State Director of the Department of State Services; and the five Divisional Police Officers of Mokola, Yemetu, Mapo, Idi Aro and Agugu.
