A fresh twist has emerged in the lingering land dispute within the SAO Family of Oba-Ile, as Prof. Olu-Aderounmu has rejected accusations of land grabbing and fraudulent sale of ancestral property worth over ₦200 million.
In a rebuttal issued by the SAO of Oba-Ile Descendants Union, Secretary Oluwadumiye Farotika described the allegations as “baseless and gross misrepresentation of facts,” pointing instead to what he called the “systematic hijack” of family lands by a small group of chiefs.
According to the statement, a five-man group consisting of High Chief Tunde Afere Faloye, Chief Olusola Aderounmu, Chief Abayomi Faloye, Chief Taye Oyinsan, and Mr. Igbekele Fabilola allegedly set up a Land Committee that has been illegally taking over properties belonging to other family descendants.
“This is nothing short of gangsterism by a minority against the majority, carried out in blatant disregard of court judgments,” the statement read, noting that both the High Court and the Appeal Court had previously ruled in favor of the Fagoroyo stock.
Prof. Olu-Aderounmu, defending his membership of the family through his maternal lineage, also referenced two separate High Court judgments upholding his mother’s Ogundari stock’s right to inheritance and restraining the chiefs from disposing of ancestral property.
For the records, the statement revealed that it was Prof. Aderounmu who recommended Chief Tunde Afere for the Sao chieftaincy title to the immediate past Oloba of Oba-Ile, who happened to be his classmate. “It is ironic that those who benefited from his goodwill now seek to discredit his lineage,” the Union said.
The group further emphasized that in Oba-Ile tradition, both male and female descendants have equal rights to family inheritance, dismissing attempts to sideline maternal descendants as invalid.
While welcoming calls for government intervention, the Union urged authorities to probe the allegations thoroughly, uphold existing judgments, and hold those responsible for “illegal land takeovers” accountable.
