I didn’t perform rites against my religious belief – Oluwo of Iwoland

The Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba AbdulRasheed Akanbi, has revealed that he refused to perform some traditional rites before ascending the throne.

In an interview with Punch, the monarch said some of the rituals were against his belief.

“There were some rites they would ask you to perform. But there were some I told them I could not perform because they were against my religious belief.

“There were some rites that did not conform with my religion and I did not perform those ones.

“Whether you perform the rites or not, the day the government announces you as the king, that is settled. That is why God made me the king, there are some things that we need to sieve out of our rich culture,” he said.

When probed further on the number of days he stayed in seclusion, the king said: “I spent the number of days I was supposed to spend there. I did everything I was supposed to do. I did all.

“Those ones are not for public consumption. Those things that happened there were just for me and not to be relayed to the public. I can’t ask you some certain things now. I can’t ask you how you did certain things in your own house.”