Adedayo Adegbola, the younger brother to embattled traditionalist Abdulazeez Adegbola, aka Tani Olohun, tells Tope Alabi how his brother was arrested in Ibadan, Oyo State, and taken to Ilorin, Kwara State, by police officers.
Adegbola’s story first hit social media in August when news surfaced that he had been arrested and taken to Ilorin for allegedly insulting the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, among other offences.
His arrest sparked mixed reactions among many. While some argued on how his human rights were violated, some Muslims celebrated his arrest.
Have you been in contact with your brother?
Yes, I speak with him every day. Everything you hear from me, you can take to be his words.
Can you tell me how he was arrested in Ibadan?
Abdulazeez received a message from a man known as Oniyawo Meta on Facebook. The man asked him to see him as he had items to contribute to the upcoming Isese Day. He gave my brother a Sanyo address. My brother set out for Sanyo on his bike. On getting to the venue, he was accosted by some men whom he assumed to be kidnappers. He immediately fled the scene, racing to the Sanyo police station. At the station, he learned that the men were officers from Kwara State, sent to arrest him. The Sanyo officers handed him over to the Kwara officers, who brought him to Ilorin that night.
How did your family find out that he had been arrested?
I saw it on Facebook. Some Muslims were sharing photos of him to celebrate his arrest.
Did anyone from the Sanyo police command reach out to your family?
No, they did not. As I said, we found out about this arrest on Facebook. I asked a relative to visit the station the following day to confirm, and his arrest was confirmed to us, but they did not officially inform my family of his arrest. They confirmed that his bike is in their custody as well.
How long have Abdulazeez and Oniyawo Meta been friends?
They were never friends. The man contacted him via Facebook, saying he had some items to contribute to the Isese Day. The man is based in Saudi Arabia and only visits Nigeria occasionally. He got my brother’s number on Facebook and sent a message to him.
What are the steps your family has taken to secure his release?
First, only I and Abdulazeez practice the Isese religion in our family. When the issue started, I informed my family not to worry as the Israeli community was and is still helping to secure his release. My family got tired after a while, so my mother went to Ilorin to plead with the Alfas so they could release my brother from custody. That, of course, did nothing, as he is still behind bars.
How has his arrest affected the family?
It has affected us. No one wants their family member locked up. He has a wife and kids, and his arrest has indeed taken its toll on them. I would also like to appreciate the Isese community; they have been helpful since this ordeal started. They have been of great help, financially and emotionally. I am indeed grateful to them.
Adegbola was nabbed on August 16, 2023, at the Sanyo Police Station in Ibadan, Oyo state, by plain-cloth police officers from the Kwara State command.
His arrest sparked massive social media outrage and debates and the eventual emergence of a Muslim cleric, simply identified as Oniyawo Meta, who stated that he was the brain behind Adegbola’s arrest in Ibadan.
In a one-hour YouTube video in September, Oniyawo Meta admitted to tricking Adegbola. He mocked the Isese activist for his blind trust in him, adding that despite the hype around Adegbola’s god, Ifa could not warn him about what would come.
“Ifa did not do well, despite all the tricks I used and lies told, Ifa never informed you (Adegbola) that I was simply lying to you? Oniyawo Meta bragged on social media.
The Muslim cleric continued detailing what happened when Tani Olorun was brought to Kwara State.
“There were so many people at the station when he was brought. Quite a number of persons waited to catch a glimpse of him. I can testify that nothing was done to him. He was not beaten,” Oniyawo Meta claimed.
His claim, however, was debunked by Adedamola Solesi Banks, one of the lawyers representing Abdulazeez in court, who disclosed that the Isese activist was wounded and could barely walk or stand in court due to the severe beatings he received in jail.
Banks told PUNCH Online in August, “Let me tell you, number one, Tani Olohun was beaten to the point where his left leg has now developed issues. He can no longer stand straight.”
This claim was corroborated by Alhaja Nofisat Adegbola, Abdulazeez’s mother, who stated that she noticed his wrist and legs were swollen when she visited him at the Oke Fura correctional facility in Ilorin in October.
Adegbola told our correspondent, “I felt pain when I saw my son at the correctional facility in Offa; he looked nothing like he used to before.
“I saw him and began to cry. He was a shadow of himself. He had lost much weight. His hands were thin, his legs pale. He was beaten and tortured, sister. My son’s leg was swollen, as well as his wrist. He was in pain.
“I just wept at the figure that before me, thats all I could do, weep.”
Attempts by our correspondent to reach the Oyo State Police PRO, DSP Adewale Osifeso, for comments on the allegations against the Sanyo Police Division proved abortive as Osifeso did not pick up his calls and, at the time of filling his report, yet to respond to a text message sent on the matter.
Adegbola was arrested on August 16 and remanded at a correctional facility in Ilorin, Kwara State, for allegedly insulting the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, among other offenses.
He has since been charged to court on a five-count charge of alleged criminal conspiracy, stirring public disturbance, disturbance of public peace, criminal defamation of character, and intentional insult.
