Socio-cultural organisation, Idanre Development Assembly, IDA, has urged Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State to approve the selection process for a new Owa of Idanre Kingdom.

IDA, in a letter addressed to the governor, lamented what they described as the prolonged vacancy on the throne following the transition of the former Owa on July 31, 2024.

The letter, jointly signed by the President-General of IDA, Dr Anthony A. Omolola, and Secretary-General, Prof Oluropo Akinfala, stated that the situation had been worsened by the recent death of the Regent and Lisa of Idanre Kingdom, High Chief Christopher Akindolire, on May 1, 2026.

According to the group, the absence of a substantive monarch has created social and economic hardships in Idanreland.

The statement reads: “The market women and men are worst hit in the hardships with the cultural relocations of their marketplaces to areas that are not conducive and dangerous for their merchandise.”

The assembly said the selection process for a new monarch had already advanced to the stage where kingmakers were expected to convene publicly under the supervision of local government officials to elect a new monarch before the process was halted by the state government.

The group argued that the suspension of the process had deprived the kingmakers of the experience and guidance of the late Akindolire, whose heightened tension and debate within the kingdom.

Appealing to the governor to intervene in the interest of peace and stability, IDA urged the state government to approve a date, preferably within May 2026, for the completion of the selection process.