The Judgment of Court of Appeal, sitting in Ilorin over the Olofa stool has come and gone but the storm might not be over as the deposed Olofa of Offa,Oba Mufutau Gbamosi Esuwoye II still sticks to his gun claiming to be still loved by his people.

The Appeal Court presided over by Justice Hussein Mukthar, Justice Obande F. Ogbuinya and Justice Tijjani Abubakar on July 9,2013 in the suit no CAI'll712012 filed by Alhaji Sheu F Oyeniyi (Magaji Olugbense Ruling House,Offa),Alhaji (Prince) Abdulrauf Adegboyega Keji and Prince Saka Keji, for themselves and on behalf of the Olugbense Ruling House, had ruled that the Respondents, Alhaji Yunus Bukoye,Essa of Offa, Alhaji Kadir Kolawole Bello,Ojomu of Offa,Alhaji Oseni Olaniyi,Balogun of Offa,Alhaji Zikrullah Kola Sanni Olaboye,Shawo of Offa,Alhaji Mufutau Mohammodu Gbadamosi Esuwoye, Attoney General of Kwara State and Kwara State Government confirmed that Offa stool was rotational.

 The Anilelerin Ruling House was challenged at the High Court by the Olugbense clan after their candidate was not picked by kingmakers and confirmed by the State Government.

 The aggrieved male ruling House, Olugbense, approached the Appellate Court after the High Court on the 19th July 2012 presided over by Justice S.M Akanbi declared that Olofa of Offa stool is not rotational and upheld the appointment and installation of the 5th Respondents as the Olofa of Offa.

The immediate past monarch of the town Oba Mustafa Olawore Olanipekun Ariwajoye II who died in March 2010 belong to female lineage of Anilelerin ruling house of Offa.

  The candidate of Olugbense male ruling group,Prince Abdulrauf Adegboyega Keji was a candidate for Olofa of Offa but was not picked by Kingmakers and State Government.

 In their grievances, the Olugbense ruling House sought the Appeal Court to determine whether the learned trial judge was right in holding that exhibit G though an original copy of a public document, must be certified to be admissible in evidence, thereby refusing to attach any weight thereto; whether the learned trial judge was right in holding that the newspaper, Exhibit O,P,Q,R and S which contain evidence of rotational chieftaincy in Offa were wrongly admitted in evidence and that the exhibits are not worthy of being accorded any weight and to be expunged from the record.

The Complainants also sought the Appeal Court's determination whether there is evidence on record to show or prove that the Olofa stool is rotational between the Olugbense Ruling House and the Anilelerin Ruling house and whether it was the turn of the claimants,Appellants, the Olugbense Ruling House to, in 2010, present the candidate to fill the vacancy created in the stool by the death of the immediate past Olofa of Offa from the Anilelerin ruling House.

The Olugbense Ruling House also wanted the Appeal Court to determine whether the learned trial judge rightly rejected the notion, principle and doctrine of fairness,justice,equity and estoppel in determining the right of the Appellants, the Olugbense Ruling House to present the candidate(2nd Appellant) to fill the vancancy in the stool created by the death of the immediate past Olofa of Offa in 2010 from the rival Anilelerin Ruling House.

In the lead judgment, Justice Hussein Mukhtar declared that "from the foregoing appraisal.exhibit G was an uncertified copy of a public document and as such falls short of passing the test of admissibility. It was rightly discountenanced by the learned trial judge. There appears to me to be nothing perverse in discountenancing an inadmissible evidence that was,in the first place,wrongly admitted during the trial proceedings. Issue one is therefore resovled against the Appellants."

 The Appellant Court further ruled that " that ascension to the throne of Olofa of offa is rotational between the Olugbense Ruling House and the Anilelerin Ruling House. That Anilelerin Ruling House having produced the immediate past Olofa,late Oba Mustapha Olawore Olanipekun Ariwajoye II who ruled for 40 years,should now give way to the Olugbense Ruling House to produce the Olofa of Offa on the basis of the established rotational chieftaincy since 1969.

"The selection, appointment,installation and recognition of the 5th Respondent as the Olofa of Offa by the 6th and 7th Respondents is null and viod and of no effect whatsoever. The 2nd Appellant who has been selected and nominated from the Olugbense Ruling House, whose turn it is to produce the next Olofa of Offa,is valid and he is entitled to be so recognised and installed by the 6th and 7th Respondents.

  "The appointment and installation of the 5th Respondent as the Olofa of Offa is hereby nullified. The 7th Respondent shall forthwith consider the selection and nomination of the 2nd Appellant being the candidate of the Olugbense Ruling House in accordance with section 3 of the Chiefs(Appointment and Deposition) Law,Cap.C9,Law of Kwara State of Nigeria 2006. The 5th Respondent is forthwith restrained from parading himself as the Olofa of Offa", the Judge ruled.

 The judgment which had thrown the Anilelerin into mourning due to the huge amount of money the deposed Olofa had expended on palace, central mosque and other developmental projects in the town was received with joy by Olugbense Ruling House. Though, the Respondents had appealed the case at the Supreme Court and applied for stay in action, the Olugbense family have insisted that the judgment of the Appeal Court be immediately implemented.

  Addressing journalists after the judgment, the spokesman of the family, Prince Saka keji said they aware that the deposed Olofa would go to the Supreme Court to challenge the decision of Appellate Court but they want the state government to install their candidate immediately.

 The family also dismissed claims by deposed Olofa, Lawyer R.O Rabbana that since the July 9 Court of Appeal Judgment, Offa has no peace stressing that supporters of Oba Esuwoye and people of the community have been trooping enmasse to their Ruling to congratulate them.

 " It is astonishing,disgusting and naïve that some uninformed people out of mischief have even suggested that the Olugbense Ruling House should allow sleeping dog to lie and allow perfidy to continue. But we say no to this because our family does not wish to sell our birthright on a mesh of pottage. Our forefathers have made compromises before in the interest of peace in Offa particularly in 1969 when Oba Mustapha Keji was persuaded by the Government of the day to step down to allow the candidate from the female Anilelerin Ruling House to be produced to start the rotational process and he did. But in 2010 when it became the turn of Ruling House to produce the candidate to fill the vacancy created by the death of Oba Mustapha Olawore Olanipekun Ariwajoye from Anilelerin ruling house,our candidate now declared by the Court of Appeal as Olofa of Offa,AbdulRauf Keji was shockingly and brazenly rejected by the Kingmakers and the Government.

"Therefore, our ruling House has lost faith in any arrangement that will continue to perpetually deny us our right to ascent to the throne of our forefathers. To us, continued peaceful and harmonious relationship between us and our neighbours can only be achieved through sober,mature and experienced leadership style as exhibited by the late Oba Mustapha Keji and Oba Mustapha Olawore Olanipekun during their memorable reign".

  Ironically, at the deposed Olofa palace, women, students were seen carrying placards in protest against the Judgment of Court of Appeal. The leader of the protesting  students across the six geo-political zones under the aegis of National Association of Polytechnic Students(NAPS) and National coordinator of Offa Student Leaders Forum(OSLF) Comrade Salahudeen A. Lukman, in interaction with Journalists, said they condemned the judgment of Court of Appeal, presided over by Justice Hussein Mukthar, describing it as calculated attempt to destabilise the peace of the community.

They urged the Kwara State Chief Judge to sanction the Judge that sat on the matter.

"The student leaders of Offa local government area of Kwara state have identified the judgment of Appeal Court as a calculated attempt to destabilise the peace and order in our dear community. It appeared as conspiracy between the Justice Hussein Mukthar and the enemies of Offa progress in order to divide the good people of Offa so as to pave way for destruction of pampering development and lawfulness.

"Justice Hussein Mukthar and his colleagues of Appeal Court sitting in Ilorin the Kwara state capital who judged the case of Offa kingship suit is described by Nigerian students more or less like Justice Talba who judged the case of pension scam."

  Despite the alleged stage-managed protest, it was on record that Court of Appeal had confirmed rotation in the case of Offa stool but whether deposed Oba Esuwoye II would remain the Olofa of Offa,  still hangs at the behest of the Supreme Court.