A coalition of Benin youths staged a public protest at the Obaseki family home in Edo State on Friday, issuing a stern warning against what they term persistent disrespect directed at the throne of the Oba of Benin. The demonstration marks a significant escalation in a lingering cultural and political feud that has captivated the state.
Carrying placards and singing in the Bini language, the protesters spent nearly an hour at the location before presenting a joint statement signed by the President of the Aiguobasinmwin Movement Worldwide, Iyamu Osaro, also known as Culture, and the Coordinator of the Otedo Youth Union, Uwadiae Iyoha. The statement, titled “Public Warning and Call for Accountability,” was later made available to journalists on Saturday, January 3rd, 2026.
According to the document, the action was compelled by “the persistent misdemeanours, reckless utterances, and sustained provocations” of the immediate past governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, and his close associates towards the Benin monarch. The youths declared the royal palace as sacred and non-negotiable. “We shall not stand and watch our sacred royal palace be ridiculed by some mediocre, whether physical or online, and we shall always be radical towards anybody who does so,” the statement read, as reported by The Punch.
The protest and its accompanying rhetoric cannot be divorced from recent events that have strained relations between the former governor’s circle and the Benin Traditional Council (BTC). The Punch had previously reported that Dr. Pedro Obaseki, a cousin to the former governor, was attacked, stripped, and paraded to the gates of the Oba’s palace in Benin City on Sunday. The assailants, captured in a widely circulated video, alleged they were bringing an “Oghion” (enemy) of the Oba.
In response, the Benin Traditional Council, in a statement signed by its Secretary, Frank Irabor, on Wednesday, distanced the palace from the harassment. Irabor stated unequivocally that the Oba did not authorise such actions, as it is “not in the character of the monarch to do so.”
However, the protesting youths argued that the Obaseki family’s vocal condemnation of the harassment of their kin revealed a “selective outrage.” They pointedly noted that the family had held a press conference to condemn the attack on Dr. Pedro Obaseki but had never publicly cautioned their members when disparaging remarks were allegedly made about the throne. “Moral authority cannot be selectively invoked only when consequences arise,” the youth leaders asserted.
The underlying tension predates this incident, rooted in a protracted dispute over the siting of the Museum of West African Arts (MOWAA). The disagreement between the former governor’s administration and the Benin Palace over the control and location of returned Benin Bronzes created a deep rift, which appears to have festered beyond Obaseki’s tenure.
In their statement, the coalition demanded that the former governor return to the state to “give explanations on contentious issues that have been linked to him.” They emphasised a commitment to lawful, civil means of holding leaders accountable but issued a clear cultural rebuke: “We are born to continually defend our rich culture, traditions, heritage and customs. Nobody should make mistakes of casting aspersions on the custodian of our rich culture… otherwise, he or she will meet the wrath of Edo people.”
The group concluded with a direct appeal to the Obaseki family itself, urging them to “restate their loyalty to the throne and call their sons to right the wrong of the past instead of making more threats.”
