HEART OF THE MATTER: When the ‘trapper’ is entrapped by his trap – The case of Chief Imam Ogbomoso’s stalled title conferment
Ben GEORGE
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The Wednesday court ruling that outlawed the conferment of Islamic titles on some individuals in Ogbomoso by the community’s Chief Imam was actually instituted by the Chief Imam and not the Soun.
My interest in this piece was stoked after l read a post on Facebook alleging Soun of waging war against Islam. That is how the writer put it though soliciting explanation on what was actually happening.
The post in the Facebook page of “Friends Who Like Adepoju” states, “Very Funny Soun of Ogbomosho is really out to fight Islam how can you take Imam to Court for Appointing Islamic Chief in the Mosque, I think I need explanation without insult, sorry I don’t understand, I want to Ask is Soun of Ogbomosho Going to Appoint CAN chairman for the. CAN ani Baba ijo for Methodist or Anglican.”
The writer seems innocent enough only trying to get enlightened against the backdrop of some misconceptions and misrepresentations earlier pushed to the public. Many Islamic leaders domiciled outside Ogbomoso in the past had come blazing fury having been fed with the insinuation that the Soun is against Islam but after they came and discovered the truth they sheathed their sword. There are mischievous people whose strategy is to persistently paint a picture of Christians vs Muslims or Soun vs Islam thereby whipping up religious sentiment to attract sympathy and “warriors’ from outside. But consistently, this their devious tactics has failed to nick the desired goal.
Back to the above, was it the Soun that filed the suit that turned around to nullify the installation of those individuals as religious chieftaincy holders?
The answer is capital NO! When the matter became intractable last year it was the Chief Imam that approached the court to seek a restraining order against his sack as Chief Imam in the face of the accusation by the Imam Ayilara family that he is not a bona fide member of the family and so is deemed an impostor. The family sent petition to the Soun demanding he steps in to address the matter. The Soun set up a panel headed by a Muslim Chief to look into the matter following which he was asked to go and settle with the Ayilara family.
Sensing he could be suspended or removed the Chief Imam acted swiftly by instituting court cases to stall any such attempt. One of such cases is one with suit no. HOG/7/2024, seeking about 12 reliefs including “A perpetual injunction restraining the Defendants, their privies, agent or any person or group of persons acting on the instruction of the Defendants from taking any step in any form what so ever for the purpose of determining whether the claimant is the appropriate person to continue to hold the office of grand chief Imam of Ogbomoso land or not.” The defendant in this case is the Soun.
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After hearing the claimant’s motion on notice, the court granted an order of interim injunction restraining the Soun from removing him, ordering the status quo be maintained pending the determination of the substantive suit.
It’s now this same restraining order that was invoked in the court on Wednesday to contain the Chief Imam from conferring any title, Islamic or traditional, on anyone, pending the determination of the suit.
So, it’s not the Soun that brought on the litigation to stop or nullify anything in the matter under review. In the light of this, “Friends Who Like Adepoju” and others in his/their shoes who have an hazy knowledge of the matter, it is the Imam that instituted the case. The counsel to the Soun only reminded the Judge of the subsisting order in respect of the extant status quo. Smart of him and pronto it was granted by the Judge! So, it is a case of a hunter who set a trap to catch games but got hooked by his device!
“Parties are hereby ordered to maintain status quo until the final determination of this suit,” the judge ruled. “In other words, parties are restrained from making any appointment or turbaning of any person pending the hearing and final determination of this case.”
What case is being referred to here? It is suit no HOG/7/2024 instituted by the Chief Imam in 2024.
That is the heart of the matter!
Soun is too preoccupied with changing the narrative of his domain in terms of developments than to bother himself with some chieftaincy titles. He hasn’t shown inclination towards such things. To make Ogbomoso a model, smart city is his preoccupation. How to transform his ambitious 25 year – development plan into reality is more dear to him. Last week, he was at the Fedegbo weaving centre buoyed by the thought of reviving the centre, visited the Federal Polytechnic Ayede both the temporary and permanent sites probably 25kms apart, called on the Aresapa of Iresapa, attended the LAUTECH convocation ceremony, received visitors in his palace and was engaged in several other assignments whose aims include bettering the lot of his territory and neighbouring communities. So, he just doesn’t have the time to be pursuing frivolities such as hampering conferment of titles.
So, to the uninformed that is the situation.
