Angry youths stone monarch over death of young people in Ekiti

The youths of Emure Ekiti Thursday protested what they called incessant deaths of young people in the community.

The angry youths, who made several bonfires in community and disrupted the market, stoned the traditional ruler the Elemure of Emure, Oba Emmanuel Adebowale Adebayo, a retired Commissioner of Police while trying to pacify them.

The youths had alleged that the palace was unconcerned about the way some youths met their untimely death in the recent times. According to the protesters, no fewer than 12 youths had died this year alone, in rather strange circumstances.

While the monarch was trying to pacify them that the community would organise an interdenominational religious prayer session to curb the trend, the monarch was pelted with sachets of water and other dangerous objects while some of the chiefs received the beating of their lives.

Chiefs of the community were said to have removed their beads and found escape routes from the palace when the situation became uncontrollable. A prince of the community told newsmen: “I had to find my way out of the town through bush paths to nearby Ise-Ekiti community before I got a vehicle that ferried me to Ado Ekiti.”

The protesting youth were said to have listed several accidents that had taken the lives of young people of the town through motorcycle and sundry accidents, claiming that in the last two weeks, about 12 youths, who are indigenes of the community had died via road accidents.

They said: “Two undergraduates, who are indigenes of Emure-Ekiti died in a motorcycle accident in Ado Ekiti on Valentine’s Day; three persons also died in an accident on Ikere – Ise – Emure road on Wednesday when the vehicles they were travelling in had a head-on collision,” adding that “the three occupants of a Mazda salon car that collided with a Toyota Dyna truck died on the spot.”

Speaking on the protest, caretaker chairman of Emure Local Government Area, Mr. Adewale Febisola, said the protesters did not visit the council secretariat, but confirmed that they went to the palace and the market.

Febisola said: “I have met with them and told them to mellow down as the traditional council has assured that they will find a solution to the problem through prayer.” He urged the youths of the community and the entire council area to embrace peace, saying: “Only through peaceful means can we reach a lasting solution to the problem.”


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