Olu of Warri Reportedly Dies Of Brain Injury

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News Sunday, September 6th, 2015

By IGNATIUS OKPARA – The influential Olu of Warri, in Delta State, Ogiamen Atuwase the II, is dead.

He was said to have passed on in Lagos on Friday night of an undisclosed ailment.

It would be recalled that the 1st class Monarch, became the Olu of Warri in 1987.

Sources alleged that the traditional ruler might have died following a brain injury he suffered after reportedly falling from the stairs case of his residence in Warri recently.

The Source reported that Atuwatse was due to have a surgery at Reddington Hospital in Victoria Island, Lagos, where he was rushed to, before he died.

It was further gathered that the monarch’s body had been flown back to Warri for interment.

The news although, has not been made public officially by the Delta State government, just as none of the palace, chiefs agreed to comment on the development.

The Olu was embroiled in a controversy in 2013, when he allegedly made moves to jettisoned the traditional title of Ogiame, a development that did not go down well with the Itsekiri people, hence they stopped it.

After days of protest by his subjects over his decision to renounce the title he bowed to the wishes of his people.

The monarch, who claimed the title Ogiame was associated with the ‘Sea goddess,’ had said he had nothing to do with the deity.

Twenty-two palace chiefs at the height of the protest kicked against the decision of the monarch to renounce the Ogiame title.

However, a source hinted on Saturday that according to the tradition of the Itsekiri land, the death of the Monarch would not be officially pronounced until after three months when a new king will be set to ascend the throne.