Isese: Emir of Ilorin replies Soyinka, gives reason for blocking traditional festival

• Emirate expresses dismay at Soyinka’s statement
• Palace says the literary arbiter was “economical with the truth”
• Emir’s action aimed at forestalling violence, says palace

Emir of Ilorin, Ibrahim Sulu Gambari has responded to professor Wole Soyinka’s scathing criticism of his decision to cancel an Isese festival in the ancient city.

Soyinka had in a statement on Thursday berated the monarch for blocking an Osun priestess, Yeye Ajesikemi Omolara, from holding the traditional festival in the state, describing the Emir’s action as “an affront to my sense of racial being”

But responding to Soyinka’s statement, the Emir said the planned Isese festival was cancelled to prevent a turmoil in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.

In a statement on Friday signed by his spokesperson, Abdul-Azeez Arowona, the emir said the decision to cancel the festival was the only way of avert situations that might lead to a crisis in other parts of the country.

He noted that allowing the festival to hold would have plunged the city into a crisis that would spread to other part of the country.

The statement read, “To set records straight, Professor Wole Soyinka tends to be economical with facts, forgetting that war is what nobody wants,” the statement said.

The spokesperson noted that the emir decided to cancel the festival because it was capable of causing chaos in the society, if not quickly addressed.

“This is to prevent crisis and not wait until it erupts because the cost of managing crises cannot be equated to the wisdom or courage required to prevent it.

“Such proactiveness is necessary in order to sustain peaceful co-existence in the society.

“It is therefore surprising to hear that the position of Professor Soyinka is identical to someone who does not consider what might transpire if the programme was hosted,” the statement said.

It added that the priestess had lived “harmoniously” in the town for years “until she decided to go beyond her boundaries”.

“It may result in issues which could also lead to reprisal attacks by sympathisers or promoters of such belief (Isese festival) in other parts of the country.

“There are many non-indigenes in Kwara who are serving and retired, including business owners who have vowed to move their families to the state due to the peace and harmony enjoyed therein.

“Yeye Ajesikemi also confirmed that she has been living harmoniously in Ilorin for many years, not until she decided to go beyond her boundaries