By Fawaz Adebisi
A Magistrate court in Isabo, Abeokuta, on Wednesday, sentenced the Osolo of Ado-Odo, Muftau Dosunmu to a six-month jail term for parading himself as an Oba in Ogun state.
According to The PUNCH, Dosunmu was sentenced on a seven-count charge, which included the installation of one Alabi Afizu as Babaloja of Ado-Odo in March 2022, contravening Section 249(1)(d) of the Criminal Code Law.
The embattled monarch also faced charges for directing a town crier to announce movement restrictions, citing spiritual rites between April 2022 and August 2022 in violation of the Criminal Code Law.
Dosunmu was also said to have falsely represented himself as the Olofin of Ado-Odo and posed as the Osolo of Ado-Odo, a kingmaker, from April 2022 to July 2023.
The prosecution, led by Adebayo Adesanya, argued that these actions violated Section 249(1)(d) and were punishable under Section 249(3) of the Criminal Code Law.
He also faced charges for assuming the role of a kingmaker without the traditional council’s approval, breaching Section 41 of the Chief’s Law of Ogun State, 2021, and punishable under Section 41(6) of the Obas and Chiefs Law.
The court therefore ruled that, “the convict is sentenced to one-month imprisonment on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th counts of the charge, with an option of a fine of N50,000 on each count for which he has been convicted. The sentences shall run consecutively from today, 28th November 2023.”
This isn’t the first time a monarch in the South Western region of Nigeria was convicted by a court of law for ‘illegal activities.’
In 2022, a High Court in Ikeja jailed a monarch, Chief Mutiu Ogundare, who is the Baale of Shangishaarea, to 15 years imprisonment for staging his own kidnap.
The state government had arraigned the monarch, his wife and his brothers before the court in 2017 over a three-count charge of conspiracy, fake kidnapping and breach of public peace.
The state accused Ogundare of allegedly on July 5, 2017, “putting himself forward to be kidnapped to cause a breach of public peace,” contrary to Section 5 of the Kidnapping Prohibition 2017, No. C17, Law of Lagos State.
Also, in Ondo, a Magistrate court jailed the traditional ruler of Ode community in the Akure North Local Government Area of the state, Oba Adewale Boboye, for unlawfully demolishing some property, palm trees and food crops.
He was therefore arraigned on six counts bordering on felony and malicious damage.
