The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has said that he will continue to respect the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, despite the latter’s snub during the official opening of the 22nd World Conference of Banking Institutes hosted by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) in Lagos on Tuesday.
Speaking to Punch on Wednesday, Ogunwusi through the Director of Media and Public Affairs, Ooni’s Palace, Moses Olafare, the Ife monarch noted that he was not perturbed by Akiolu’s action and that he was committed to ensuring unity among monarchs.
In Olafare’s words, “Nobody should castigate anybody for doing what he did because of the position he holds and because of his age. Ooni would not stop to accord his colleagues and every category of people the respect they deserve.
“The Ooni of Ife is not ready to make any official statement over what happened between him and the Oba of Lagos.
“He still holds Oba Akiolu in high esteem and what happened yesterday will not stop the Ooni from holding him in high esteem.”
A video that went viral on Tuesday shows Adeyeye and the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, exchange greetings at the CIBN event in Lagos.
Akiolu, a retired police officer, however, rejected Adeyeye’s handshake and dismissed him with a raise of the hand.
