By Ozioruva Aliu

BENIN CITY — A traditional ruler in Edo State, HRH Theophilus Osobase II, the Onojie of Egoro in Esan West Local Government Area of state is at loggerheads with some of his subjects over alleged taking over of their land and destroying commercial crops planted in them.

The aggrieved members of the community through their lawyer, A. O. O. Ekpu & Co in a petition to the Edo State Commissioner of Police dated December 27, 2023, on behalf of the elders and people of the community accused the traditional ruler of “willful and malicious destruction of plantation” in their plantation.

The petition also identified 11 other people in the community, which they said were responsible for the destruction of the crops on the orders of the traditional and that the people were becoming scared of their homeland.

They were accused of conniving and carrying out massive bulldozing of oil palm trees and other crops in the plantations belonging to members of the Egoro Amede community, on the alleged instruction of the monarch.
The petition has led to the police summoning the traditional ruler and the other 11 people to appear before it on January 9.

Some of the elders told Vanguard that they stood by him to take over the stool of his father after his demise in 1992, four months before he was born.

But when contacted, an angry Osobase, who criticised this reporter for allegedly joining to slander him, said contrary to reports, he would honour the police invitation and that he was not having issues with the elders of the community but just an individual.

According to him, “I don’t have any issue with elders in my community, elders in my community will be numbering close to a 1000 and having issues with one person does not connote having issues with elders in my community. I am just having issues with one person.

“Can I steal from myself? I am the Onojie of Egoro and I am Onojie over the people and the territory so can I take from myself what already belongs to me? I will be in Benin City tomorrow (today) to answer the invitation. I am the Onojie of Egoror, I cannot run from my people, I cannot run from the throne.”