There was tension at the Oluyole Estate residence of the former governor of Oyo State, Abiola Ajimobi, as security men denied the state’s Deputy Governor, Rauf Olaniyan, access to the eighth-day Fidau prayers of the late immediate-past governor.
The prayer, scheduled for 11am, was held within the compound of the deceased.
The family had earlier announced in a statement that the Fidau prayer was a private programme.
Members of the public were urged to watch the service through virtual channels such as Zoom, YouTube and Facebook.
Olaniyan, who arrived at the residence at about 11:20 am in a convoy of five vehicles, was stopped at the gate of the road leading to Ajimobi’s residence.
The security agents manning the gate insisted that only the deputy governor’s vehicle could be allowed into the street for the prayer.
The deputy governor’s security details initially rebuffed the idea but a senior policeman intervened and the deputy governor’s vehicle was allowed in.
However, at Ajimobi’s residence, the gate was also locked. When the deputy governor’s aides introduced their principal, they were told that the gate had been locked, and that the widow of the deceased, Chief Florence, was with the key.
After waiting for about 15 minutes without any solution the deputy governor left the residence.
Via Punch