By Segun Adebayo
The Oyo State Police Command has warned the wife, father and other family members and associates of late gospel singer Olayemi Bayonle Bolaji, popularly known as Toluwanisings, against granting media interviews or making public statements over the disagreement surrounding his burial.
The warning followed a peace meeting convened by the Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Ayodeji Olugbenga, at the Command Headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan, on Tuesday.
The disagreement reportedly centres on where the singer should be buried, with his father insisting that his remains should be taken to Osun State and laid to rest beside his late mother or at the house he built.
His wife, Olayemi Elizabeth Damilola, was reportedly opposed to the proposal to bury him at their residence, with the disagreement eventually extending to the proposed burial arrangements and generating heated exchanges between family members and the singer’s associates.
Per Second News (PSN) learnt that the controversy also took a different dimension when members of the singer’s family reportedly demanded that his death be properly investigated before his burial.
The family raised suspicions of foul play and threatened to exhume his remains if he was buried in a cemetery against their wishes.
The disagreement generated allegations of conspiracy and defamation of character, alongside exchanges on social media and other public communication platforms, prompting concerns about a possible breakdown of public peace.
According to the police, the Commissioner received information about the disagreement on October 28 and subsequently directed that the parties be invited to the command headquarters for an intervention aimed at preventing further escalation and facilitating an amicable resolution.
PSN gathered that those who signed the peace undertaking included the singer’s wife, Mrs Olayemi Elizabeth Damilola; his father, Mr Muniru Olayemi; and his friends and associates, Oyindamola Esther, Babadunni Gbolabo and Comrade Lawal Ademola Rafiu.
His personal assistant and other representatives also participated in the meeting.
In the undertaking, the parties agreed to maintain peace and good behaviour, refrain from actions capable of causing a breach of the peace and discontinue public exchanges, interviews and discussions that could aggravate the disagreement surrounding the singer’s death.
The police further disclosed that the parties agreed to stop circulating information, allegations and publications relating to the matter through social media, print media, radio, blogs and other communication channels.
The agreement also extends to their proxies, agents, associates and representatives, who are expected to refrain from making, sponsoring, amplifying or circulating publications capable of reigniting the dispute.
They also agreed not to grant interviews or facilitate engagements with media platforms for the purpose of further publicising their accounts of the controversy.
The Police Commissioner warned that the agreement must be respected by all parties and those acting on their behalf, cautioning against attempts to exploit the singer’s death to instigate hostility or promote unsubstantiated allegations.
“No individual should take advantage of the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the singer’s demise to instigate hostility, promote unsubstantiated allegations or engage in conduct capable of disrupting public peace,” the Commissioner was quoted as saying.
He added that anyone whose actions constitute an offence under applicable laws would be arrested and prosecuted, while the command appealed to bloggers, media practitioners and members of the public to exercise restraint and avoid circulating unverified information capable of reigniting tensions.
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