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An Ekiti State Magistrate Court sitting in the Ilawe Ekiti District has ordered Sunday Adetolaju, the suspended priest of Ororin in Irorin Quarter, to vacate Owa Orin, the traditional residence designated for the priest of the Ororin deity.

The ruling, delivered on Tuesday in a motion dated June 3, 2025, with suit number MIL/1M/2025, came following a case filed by the Alawe of Ilawe Ekiti, Oba Ajibade Alabi, against Adetolaju. In its decision, the court declared:

“This honourable court hereby orders and directs the respondent (Adetolaju) to vacate Owa Orin premises lying, situated and being at Egbeku, Irorin Quarters, Ilawe Ekiti.

“The respondent was there by virtue of his position as Ororin and Deity Priest of Orinlase in Ilawe Ekiti, but since he has been suspended by Ekiti State Government via exhibit EKA2 attached to the motion, the place has to be vacated by the respondent pending final resolution between him and the applicant,” the Chief Magistrate ruled.

The court’s directive followed the suspension of Adetolaju and the subsequent appointment of Omo Orin Tunde Bamgbotogun as acting Ororin by the Alawe. The traditional ruler had approached the court seeking to enforce Adetolaju’s removal from the residence.

The court document, made available in Ado Ekiti on Thursday, detailed the monarch’s request:

“An order directing, mandating and or compelling the respondent (Adetolaju) to immediately vacate the Owa Orin premises lying, situated and being at Egbeku, Irorin Quarters, Ilawe Ekiti and which is the traditional residence of reigning Ororin and Deity Priest of Orinlase in Ilawe Ekiti.”

Additionally, the Alawe sought “such further or other order(s) as the Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstances of his case.”

The monarch’s counsel, Dr. Emmanuel Adetifa, emphasized before the court that the residence in question was not a personal property but the official abode for whoever occupies the office of Ororin.

“Owa Orin is not a personal property, but serves as residence to an Ororin in office and that since an acting Ororin had been appointed, the suspended Sunday Adetolaju should vacate the residence immediately,” Adetifa stated.

Supporting the case were several documents tendered by the monarch, including:

  • “Letter of request for permission to suspend Deity priest Ororin Sunday Adetolaju for flagrant disrespect and violation of the chief law” dated May 15, 2025
  • “RE: letter of request for permission to suspend Deity priest, Ororin Sunday Adetolaju, for flagrant disrespect and violation of the chief law” dated May 21, 2025
  • “Ororin Sunday Adetolaju: Suspension as Ororin” dated May 21, 2025

The ruling marks a significant development in the ongoing dispute surrounding the Ororin title and its custodianship in Ilawe Ekiti.

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