The Ilaje community in the Bariga area of Lagos State has vowed to resist the renaming of Ilaje Street after the music legend, King Sunny Ade, accusing the local council authority of attempting to erase its historical identity. Last Friday, the immediate past Chairman of the Bariga Local Council Development Area, David Kolade Alabi, announced the renaming of several streets, including Ilaje Street, as part of efforts to honour notable figures. However, the move has sparked intense backlash both on the streets and online, where critics allege it reflects ethnic bias and a disregard for local history. Protesters from the Ilaje community took to the streets on Wednesday, demanding a reversal of the name change, arguing that the council’s decision undermined the cultural and historical heritage of their people. In an exclusive interview with PUNCH Metro on Thursday, the President General of Egbe Omo Ilaje Worldwide, Raphael Irowainu, condemned the renaming as a “calculated attempt to decimate” the Ilaje people in Lagos State. “It was a calculated attempt by the political elites and some Yoruba ethnic groups to erase the historical and cultural involvement of the Ilaje people in the creation of Lagos State. “The Bariga community was founded in 1948 by our great-grandfathers. The entire place was like a forest.” They were the ones who made the road before the state government took over later,” Irowainu said. He further alleged a pattern of targeted and deliberate marginalisation of his people in the state. He said, “On March 7, the Lagos State Government, in connivance with some persons, went to another Ilaje community and demolished the area. “A monarch in Oworo sent people to demolish parts of Ilaje in Oworonshoki. Go to Majidun, and you will hear a similar story. These are calculated events to erase and decimate the Ilaje people.” Highlighting the group’s historical significance, Irowainu added, “The Ilaje are among the three early settlers of Lagos State —alongside the Awori and Ijebu. “We are not strangers. We are Yorubas just like any other Yoruba. Ilaje is a recognised sub-ethnic group in Yorubaland.” He also questioned the rationale behind honouring King Sunny Ade in an Ilaje territory when other areas could be named after the revered music icon. He said, “They now want to rename Ilaje Street to King Sunny Ade Street, when we have Ondo Street in Ebute Meta. Why not rename that one if they truly want to honour him? This is a war against the Ilaje people.” Disclosing that the community had already filed a petition against the decision, Irowainu threatened legal action, arguing that the LCDA lacks constitutional authority to rename streets. “If it requires going through legal means, we will do it. Even the so-called LCDA is illegal. “The constitution only recognises 20 local governments—not LCDAs. It’s only the local governments that have the power to rename streets, and even at that, there must be consultation with the affected communities,” he maintained. The former council chairman, who initiated the renaming, had defended the decision, saying it was meant to celebrate individuals who had brought global recognition to Bariga. “As an administration, we took our time to reflect on a number of our people who have put the name of our local council out on the global map through their respective God-given talents and crafts,” David had stated. Efforts to reach the new LCDA Chairperson, Bukola Adedeji, for comments on whether the council would review the street renaming were unsuccessful, as she did not respond to calls or text messages sent by PUNCH Metro on Thursday.

A commercial driver, Olumide Lawal, has narrated how a suspected ritualist, Salawu Omikansola, killed and dismembered his 16-year-old son, Wahab Lawal, for ritual purposes in the Igbile Ijebu area of Ogun State. Lawal disclosed this in an exclusive interview with PUNCH Metro on Wednesday. PUNCH Metro reported that the Ogun State Police Command, in a statement signed by its Public Relations Officer, Omolola Odutola, disclosed that Lawal had reported his son missing on July 21. Odutola had noted that on July 23, the decomposed body of the boy was found along the expressway with some body parts, including his head, wrists, heart, and genitals, mutilated. Odutola had also disclosed that police operatives, while acting on credible intelligence, arrested Salawu Omikansola and Serefusi Agemo in connection with the incident. Speaking with our correspondent, Lawal narrated that his mother had called him to ask if Wahab was at his place because they couldn’t locate his whereabouts. Lawal noted that upon receiving the call, he drove from Ijebu-Ode to Ijebu Igbile to meet his mother, and they both searched the entire community without any trace of the missing son. He narrated that he reported the matter immediately to the police, and they continued the search until Wednesday, when some members of the Igbile community told him that they saw his clothes and sandals along the road. He continued, “On Wednesday, I left home by 4 a.m. because I was uncomfortable, and I continued to search everywhere, but I couldn’t find him. I went home, but at about 2 p.m., when I returned to Igbile, some women came to me and said they saw clothes and sandals that looked like those of my child I was looking for when they were returning from the farm, and they were suspecting that my son had been killed. “I was surprised — how could he have been killed? And I said they should take me there. The people were scared, so I took a bike and when I got to the scene, I met my son’s corpse. He had been killed. His head, his two wrists, his heart, and his private parts had been chopped off.” He said he reported the discovery to the police, who instructed that the deceased’s body should be buried. Following the discovery, Lawal noted that he began to sniff for information in the area and eventually learnt that some vigilantes had accosted a man with bloodstains all over his body on the day his son went missing. Armed with the information, he began a hunt alongside the police for the suspect, and they eventually arrested him. Lawal narrated that following the suspect’s arrest, he confessed that he was allegedly instructed by a traditionalist to kill the boy. He continued, “While I was sniffing around for information, I heard from someone that someone was accosted at about 1 a.m. on Monday by vigilantes, and the person had bloodstains on his clothes and body. But when they asked him where he got the stains, he said he had gone to kill a dog for someone celebrating Ogun Ajobo, which made the vigilantes free him. “Someone pointed the suspect out to me, and I informed the police, who arrested him and took him to their station. I believe that after he was investigated, he began confessing that he was sent by one Serefusi to kill the boy. “He gave the police the details of how they killed the boy and dismembered his body, which prompted them to arrest Serefusi. He said he was scared when he was asked to kill the boy, but Serefusi told him not to be afraid. Serefusi is the head of the Agemo worshippers in the community.” Lawal concluded by appealing to the state government and all relevant institutions to ensure that justice prevailed in the matter. “My appeal to the government is that they should not let the death of my son be in vain. I want justice for him because I am beginning to hear that Serefusi is influential and has backup that may help him evade justice,” Lawal concluded. As of the time of filing this report, our correspondent could not obtain comments from the suspects, Omikansola and Serefusi, as they remained in custody. PUNCH Metro reported on a similar incident on Thursday when the Anambra State Police Command arrested one female suspect identified as Somtochukwu Nwafor, aged 24 years, in connection with the murder of a pregnant nurse in Umueri village, Ogbunike, in the Oyi Local Government Area of the state. Our correspondent had gathered that the prime suspect, who is currently on the run, lured the nurse on the pretence that he was seeking medication, after which he killed the victim and buried the mutilated body parts in a soakaway pit.

Seven farmers who were kidnapped last Saturday while working on their farmland in Itaogbolu, Akure North Local Government Area of Ondo State, have regained their freedom. The victims were released on Wednesday night after spending five days in captivity, a relative of one of the abductees told the News Agency of Nigeria on Friday. The relative, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “I’m happy to tell you that the kidnappers released all seven farmers on Wednesday night. They are back with their families. “I want to let you know that when the kidnappers demanded ransom, which was N100 million initially before it was reduced to N20 million, we were only able to raise N5 million. “They were released in Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti, on Wednesday night after collecting the N5 million and food items. “The victims are now in the hospital for medical attention.” Efforts by NAN to speak with the state Commander of Amotekun Corps, Mr Adetunji Adeleye, were unsuccessful as calls to his cell phone were not answered. When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Olushola Ayanlade, simply said, “I’m not aware of their release.” NAN

Properties worth millions of Naira were destroyed as no fewer than six shops were razed by fire in Ogbomoso, Oyo State. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the fire, which occurred on Thursday at Ile-Ewe, Sawmill Area, Ogbomoso, affected six out of 10 locked-up shops in the area. The Chairman, Oyo State Fire Services Agency, Mr Maroof Akinwande, confirmed the incident in a statement in Ibadan on Friday. According to Akinwande, the personnel of the agency received a distress call about the fire incident from one Mr David Ajagbe at exactly 14:08 hours on Thursday. Akinwande said that the agency’s personnel, led by CFS Dairo, promptly left for the scene and arrived on time. “On getting to the scene, we met six out of 10 locked up shops well alight and quickly engaged our appliance, and we were able to curtail the fire from spreading to other shops and nearby properties. “Properties worth millions of Naira were affected by the fire, and the fire service was able to save millions of properties,” the chairman said. He added that no casualty was recorded while the investigation was ongoing to ascertain the cause of the fire incident. NAN