The Palace of Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Sen. Lekan Balogun, Alli Okunmade II, has described a piece of news alleging ‘concern over the health’ of the monarch as a mere fabrication to serve the sinister purpose of the author.
A statement issued and signed by Personal Assistant (Media) Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oladele Ogunsola, indicated that the evil wish of the author became more manifest with the claim that Olubadan has been moving in and out of hospitals in the past few weeks, a claim that was nothing but a concocted, wicked, baseless lie.
The statement reads: “Before anybody could be reasonably said to be moving in and out of any place, it means such a person, at least, must be found in such a place once or twice in a week, and I don’t know of any hospital where such a record exists for the current Olubadan.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Oba Sen. Lekan Balogun has been performing all his expected traditional and social roles since his ascension to the throne in March this year, and where he could not be due to crowded engagements, his members of Council (Olubadan-in-Council) have always been taking up much on his behalf.
Although the author claimed ‘Palace sources’, it amounts to recklessness and a lack of respect for the ethics of the journalism profession, which enjoins the practitioner to investigate and ascertain the truth before rushing to the press. The ethics even state that when in doubt, one should leave it out.
For a journalist that’s worth being called one, I wonder what other credible source could be outside of the palace spokesperson who readily obliges colleagues with necessary information. What’s more, Kabiyesi himself has been a friend of the media for decades, and his ascension to the position of Olubadan has not altered his relationship with the media in the slightest.
So, except for mischief and undue sensationalism, the author has no basis to hide under a ubiquitous ‘palace source’ to do his job except for a purpose – a hatchet job. Just last Friday, the approximately 80-year-old man was at His Majesty’s ancestral palace in Aliiwo to promote the Chiefs in the Iyalode line of the Olubadan traditional system.
“One cannot claim to be oblivious of the current trend of everybody becoming journalists without any form of training whatsoever, and what they can only claim is just possession of a handset. There is a need for caution and to mind what they dish out to earn people’s respect and commendation. In this instance, the author goofed, and whatever might have been his imagination to come up with such a wicked piece was not in good faith.”
