The Osun State Government has placed the Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi, under watch and issued him a formal caution over alleged inflammatory remarks capable of triggering religious and inter-town conflicts.
The warning was contained in a letter from the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Office of the Permanent Secretary, with reference number CD.17/1/VOL.VIII/377, dated November 2026 and signed by Wale Alliyu on behalf of the Permanent Secretary.
A copy of the letter, obtained by The PUNCH in Osogbo on Wednesday, was also sent to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, in his capacity as Chairman, Osun State Council of Obas.
According to the government, it had observed recent well-publicised statements and pronouncements from Oba Akanbi that could ignite religious confrontation, inter-town conflicts and disruption of communal peace.
"You cannot, and you must not, conduct yourself in any way that can foment religious crisis through serial attacks on people of other faiths," the letter read.
"Your Royal Majesty is also invited to note that just as the traditional stool should not be used to incite religious war, its occupants should also be mindful not to erode the traditional values, culture and tradition of the society over which they preside."
The government said the monarch's activities were "raising communal tension, sowing seeds of communal and religious discord and increasingly discrediting the traditional values of your people and Yoruba society, of which your domain is a major part."
It issued six cautionary directives, including:
- Stop any further attacks on people of other faiths forthwith, noting all citizens have the right to religious freedom
- Refrain from further attacks on fellow traditional rulers to forestall likely inter-town confrontation
The Ministry said it will monitor compliance by the monarch, while the State Council of Obas was directed to monitor developments in Iwoland and take appropriate action where necessary.
Although the letter did not specify the exact utterances, Oba Akanbi has through his social media pages often accused other Yoruba monarchs of engaging in idolatry.
On July 1, in a video shared on his Facebook page, he said traditional rites and seclusion for new royal fathers were not good practice, declaring it an avenue to enslave and lure them into idolatry. On October 10, he also reportedly said the idea of an ancient crown was a ruse.
When contacted, the Oluwo's Press Secretary, Alli Ibraheem, said the monarch had not received any letter from the state government — despite the government stating the letter was received by the monarch's secretary on Tuesday, November 3.
