Community leaders and residents of Idiroko, a border town in Ipokia Local Government Area of Ogun State, have raised alarm over what they described as a looming religious crisis fueled by attacks on Oro worshippers during their court-approved night rituals.
The controversy stems from longstanding opposition to the town’s annual Oro festival, which has frequently sparked clashes between traditionalists, Christians, and Muslims in the area.
In 2017, the Ogun State High Court in Ipokia, presided over by Justice S. M. Owodunni, ruled that daytime curfews linked to traditional festivals were unconstitutional. The judgment mandated that all Oro rituals be conducted strictly between midnight and 4 a.m.
However, tensions resurfaced in July 2025, when the League of Imams and Alfas in Ogun State accused Oro worshippers of breaching the court order by imposing a daytime curfew during the burial rites of the late Oniko of Ikolaje, Oba John Adekunle. In a petition to Governor Dapo Abiodun, the Muslim leaders alleged human rights violations and urged security agencies to intervene.
On Thursday, community leaders—including religious groups, ethnic associations, women, and youth representatives—held a joint press conference at the palace of the Oniko of Ikolaje, demanding an end to the crisis.
Spokesman Taiwo Obanla said the unrest was being fueled by religious extremists bent on discrediting Idiroko’s traditions.
“These people are not indigenes of this town. How can outsiders come here and try to erase our centuries-old traditions and culture?” Obanla asked.
He argued that Oro adherents had complied with the 2017 court ruling by restricting rituals to nighttime, but alleged that detractors continued spreading falsehoods to stir division.
“They lie that people were killed during the festival, but where is the evidence? They even arrested teenagers during our last Oro festival, threatening to send them to prison. This is getting too much. We don’t want to take the law into our hands, so we appeal to the government to act before it escalates,” Obanla warned.
Supporting the call for peace, the Balogun of Ikolaje, Daniel Olusola Edun, declared that Idiroko would not tolerate attempts to destabilize its harmony.
Also, Venerable Samuel Olugbade of St Paul’s African Church insisted Oro worshippers had never harmed anyone in the community.
The Chief Imam of Ikolaje Idiroko, Tajudeen Okeojo, whose family once practiced traditional worship, also urged mutual respect among religious groups.
“Oro festival, as we were taught, is for peace. My predecessors always worked with traditionalists to ensure no disruption of Friday or Sunday worship,” he noted.
Representatives of the Hausa community, Ishaya Manasseh, and the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chinedu Desmond, confirmed that their members had not been negatively affected by Oro festivals, emphasizing the need for tolerance and unity.