The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has urged Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, to immediately begin the process of dethroning Oba Joseph Oloyede, the Apetu of Ipetumodu, following his conviction in the United States for COVID-19 relief fraud.
On August 26, 2025, Justice Christopher Boyko of the U.S. District Court for Northern Ohio sentenced the monarch to five years in prison and ordered him to repay $4.4 million to victims of the fraudulent scheme.
Oba Oloyede had earlier pleaded guilty to using six shell companies to secure emergency loans under the Paycheck Protection Programme (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL).
In a letter to Governor Adeleke, HEDA’s Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, stressed that a traditional ruler should embody integrity and cultural values, not carry the stigma of a criminal conviction.
“Traditional rulers are custodians of culture and symbols of authority. Such a sacred position must never be tainted by fraud or corruption,” Suraju said.
HEDA warned that failure to act would amount to condoning fraud and eroding the dignity of Osun’s traditional institutions.
It urged the governor to protect Nigeria’s image at home and abroad.
Meanwhile, tension is brewing in Iree, Boripe Local Council, where stakeholders have been warned against imposing a monarch on the community despite a subsisting court judgment.
Justice M. O. Awe of the Osun State High Court had, on May 14, 2024, nullified the emergence of Prince Muritala Oyelakin as the Aree of Iree and ordered that the stool remain vacant until due process was followed.
The court further restrained Governor Adeleke from installing Oyelakin or handing him the staff of office.
Reacting to claims that the stool is already occupied, Prince Ali Afolabi of the Olubonku ruling house reminded indigenes to respect the rule of law and avoid actions that could violate the court’s ruling.