Alajede Palace: Shameful State of A First Class Ruler’s Palace

-Alajede-in-council Appeal for Governor Ambode’s intervention

Kunle Adelabu.

The main palace with a collapsed roof begging for urgent attention

Palaces in Africa is an important traditional and cultural heritage which are preserved for important reasons, chiefly among which is the reconstruction of history and tourism development. It is in this light that government and communities are ensuring that their palaces are in good state.

Unfortunately, this is not the case in Ijede, a modest community in Ikorodu division of Lagos State, where the Oba’s palace is as good as animal’s abode. Members of the Alajede-in-council now seat under the palace tree to adjudicate and attends to community’s affairs.

The palace’s roof has almost been completely blown-off; the main palace has caved-in; weeds now grows around the palace; the two water systems in the premises have collapsed while the windows have broken and the entire surrounding is unkempt.

The frontage roof blown-off

THE IMPACT gathered that the palace which was built in 1979 during the reign of the late Alajede, Oba Dairo Alliu Akilo, who came from Orese Ruling House, was struck by two major storms in 2014 and 2015 and every attempt to make the Lagos State government to repair the palace since then had proved abortive.

In an interview with the members of the Alajede-in-Council led by the Regent/Olisa of Ijede, High Chief Musediq Alliu, which held under a tree beside the dilapidated palace building, it was revealed that the traditional chiefs have been sitting outside the palace to hold their meetings since the first storm struck in 2014.

Speaking on behalf of the chiefs, Chief Babatunde Ogunmuyiwa, the Odofin of Ijede said,

The Publisher/Chief Reporter of the THE IMPACT Newspaper (with glasses during an interview session with members of the Alajede-in-Council recently.

“It was the storm of April 14, 2014, which affected many places in Lagos State that badly damaged the palace. And after the storm, we tried all we could to reach out to the Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Local Government & Chieftaincy and the sitting Governor then, Mr Babatunde Fashola, sent his Commissioner for Special Duties to come and assess the impact of the storm. During the Commissioner’s visit, we were told that the government is going to do something about the palace in good time but since then, nothing has been done. We have also written lots of letters to that effect but we have received no response.

In 2006, when the administration of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu intervened in upgrading palaces across the state, especially the palaces of the First Class Obas, the Alajede palace was not included. During this period, the palaces of other First Class Obas in Ikorodu division like the Ayangbure, Ranodu and Adeboruwa were rehabilitated.

If the other three First Class Obas palaces in Ikorodu division enjoyed government’s attention, why was the Alajede palace left out? Was any fund released for its rehabilitation? If yes, what happened to the fund? These and many other questions were thrown-up but there is little or no answer.

When asked why the Alajede palace was left-out of the rehabilitation, the spokesperson for the Alajede-in-Council said,

Chief Babatunde Ogunmuyiwa, the Odofin of Ijede during the interview

“The reason is best known to them. We had the information then and the palace of Alajede was penciled for rehabilitation but we did not get to see that happening. But since the incident of April 2014, we have tried reaching out to the government by writing series of letters. This is an historical place which deserves government’s attention.

“When Governor Ambode came to campaign in Ijede, the rehabilitation of the palace was one of our requests from him and he promised to do something about it. The second storm occurred last year July and that really affected our palace to the extent that we can no longer hold meeting inside it. We are still appealing to the government to help us do something urgently in putting the palace in order. I believe that our amiable governor will do something soon about the palace because it has been very shameful for us that a First Class Oba’s palace in Lagos State is like this. The palace lacks every aspect of modernity. There is no fence, water, light and other infrastructure. You can see that we are attending to you under the tree because we can no longer seat inside the dilapidated palace.

Frontage of Alajede palace, Ijede

Chief Ogunmuyiwa also told our reporter that the Ijede Local Council Development Area (LCDA) is also aware of the state of the palace.

“We usually copy every letter we have written to the state government to the Ijede LCDA. In fact, most of the letters were written through the council. They are aware of our predicaments.

Attempt to hear from the Sole Administrator of Ijede Local Council Development Area (LCDA), proved abortive.

 

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