From Olanrewaju Lawal, Ilorin
An Appeal Court sitting in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital on Wednesday affirmed the existence of two ruling houses entitled to the Olofa of Offa stool.
The two ruling houses are Anilelerin and Olugbense royal family.
The Appellate Court had in July last year declared the selection and installation of Anilelerin candidate, Alhaji Mohammed Mufutau Gbadamosi as the Olofa of Offa as illegal.
The court also set aside the aspect of the 2012 judgment of the state High Court sitting in Offa, Offa local government area, which dismissed the counter-claim of Anilelerin ruling house as statue-barred.
The trial court had then declared that the selection and installation of Alhaji Gbadamosi as the Offa monarch, was legal.
This time around, the Anilelerin ruling house in a cross appeal, had approached the court, praying the court to declare that there is no rotation to Olofa’s stool; a declaration that only Anilelerin ruling house exists and a declaration that the Kwara state Gazette of 1970 is not statue-barred. The gazette, which established that there are two ruling houses in Offa.
In a unanimous judgment yesterday, in Ilorin, which was read by Justice Pemu, the three-man panel, led by Justice A. G Mshelia,other members of the panel, Justice A .Jauro and Justice R.N Pemu said that the “manner in which the learned trial judge handled the counter-claim was inequitable and perverse.”
Never miss a moment! Get the stories shaping Nigeria, delivered straight to your phone. Follow Peoplesdaily Newspaper on WhatsApp for breaking news, exclusive reports, and the headlines everyone will be talking about, before anyone else.
