The controversy surrounding Fuji music icon Wasiu “Kwam 1” Ayinde’s bid to ascend the vacant Awujale stool of Ijebuland in Ogun State deepened on Thursday as the Fusengbuwa Ruling House of Ijebu-Ode, next in line to produce the new monarch, raised concerns over alleged irregularities in his submitted form.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that the ruling house granted the 68-year-old musician a grace period until 10 December to complete the required documentation for the selection process, even though the application window closed on 5 December.
However, a lineage form sighted by this newspaper and now circulating on social media indicated that Kwam 1 met the deadline and submitted his application before the window closed.
The form showed that the musician traced his ancestry to the Setejoye family unit of the Jadiara Ruling House through his father, Adesanya Anifowoshe.
Adetayo Oduneye, head of the Setejoye unit, countersigned it.
Irregularities
Reacting to the circulating form, the Fusengbuwa ruling house, in a statement signed by its head, Abdulateef Owoyemi, on Thursday, said the form was actually submitted on Wednesday.
Highlighting the alleged irregularities in the application, Mr Owoyemi stated, “Please permit us to reply as follows: The form was not signed by the authorised representative (Family Head) of your purported Family Unit Head; Omoba Adetayo Abayomi Oduneye Eruobodo is not a registered member of the Jadiara Royal House and therefore, has no locus standi to sign any linkage form on behalf of the family; and,
“Our extensive investigation has not revealed any proof of your membership of the Jadiara Royal House or indeed that of Fusengbuwa Ruling House. Consequently, the completed linkage lineage form is hereby declared null, void and of no consequence. For the avoidance of doubt, your claim to the membership of Fusengbuwa Ruling House is rejected, and the completed form is of no consequence. Please accept our best wishes for your future endeavours.”
Emergency meeting
Additionally, Mr Owoyemi stated that the ruling house has convened an emergency meeting for today at Ile Nla, the family compound in Ijebu-Ode, to deliberate on Kwam 1’s bid for the Awujale throne, The Punch reported.
He explained that submitting the form marked the first step for anyone seeking to contest the Awujale stool.
Mr Owoyemi added that once a contender is confirmed as a bona fide member of the ruling house, they may then proceed to apply for the expression of interest form.
“The essence of filling the royal lineage data form, where contenders trace their genealogy back seven generations to establish their membership in the Fusengbuwa ruling house, is to prevent outsiders from claiming the throne,” Mr Owoyemi said.
Not our member
Furthermore, The Punch reported that the Chairman of the Jadiara ruling house, Akinola Odedina, stated in a letter that Kwam 1 has no genealogical ties to the royal family.
“I can say categorically that Wasiu has no genealogical lineage to Jadiara Royal House. The Chairman of Fusengbuwa Ruling House may have given him a nomination form, expecting him to authenticate his roots. We have been waiting for him to present his documents to prove his connection to the Jadiara Royal House. He is yet to show up”, the paper quoted Mr Odedina saying.
Moreover, the paper reported that the Chairman of the Bubiade royal family, O. B. Yusuf, stated that neither Kwam 1 nor his father has any familial ties to the family.
He added, “I want the public to know that we don’t have any Anifowose from our family. We have been waiting for him to present his documents to prove his lineage, but he has yet to show up.
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“As the head of the Bubiade Royal Family unit, I think it is necessary to release this information because of circulating rumours suggesting that I signed Otunba Wasiu Ayinde Anifowose’s family membership form.”
Backstory
This newspaper reported that Wasiu Ayinde Marshal, also known as K1, declared that he would not be silenced in his bid for the Awujale throne during a performance in Ipara, Ijebu Ode.
The musician dismissed critics questioning his ancestry and his intention to vie for the prestigious title.
He emphasised that contesting for the throne was his right, noting that the late Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona, would not have conferred the Olori Omo-Oba title on him had he not been of royal lineage.
“If your issue is the kingship I am vying for, it is my right; you can’t shut me up. The late Kabiyesi Awujale, Oba Adetona, was of sound mind, and he knew what he was doing when he bestowed on me the title of Olori Omo-Oba. If I were not from a royal lineage, he would not have given me that title”, he said.
