Olu of owerri has to choose between God and god

There have been protests and serious tension in Warri,
Delta state for some days for now after the Olu of
Warri, Ogiame Atuwase II, announced the abolition of
some of the ancient Itshekiri cultural practices. The Olu
of Warri who is a born again Christian with a
Foursquare Worship Centre in his palace, had last
Wednesday September 4th declared in a document
titled, “The New Order of Iwere Kingdom,” that the
“Ogiame” title which had been in existence for over
500 years would no longer exist because it is
purportedly associated to a river goddess. He now only
wants to serve one God.
The Olu of Warri in the document, said:
“I also repent for the name and title of “Ogiame” that
my ancestors and I have borne, as it connotes our
allegiance to Umalokun (goddess of the river) and other
deities of the sea, all of which are false gods. Today, I
renounce our allegiance to Umalokun and other gods of
the sea, land and sky. On behalf of the royal bloodline,
the throne, the people of Iwere land, I publicly enter
into a new covenant with God.”
Not only did the King renounce his traditional title of
Ogiame, he also dissociated himself from some of the
kingdom’s age-long traditional practices, which he
described as paganism. This seeming born again
position by the King has been seen to be an insult to the
traditional history of the Itsekiris.
There are also indications that the King did not consult
the Itsekiri Traditional Council of Chiefs and Ruling
Houses before he took the decision. Now the people of
Warri are asking him to either withdraw his statement
or abdicate the throne.
Several people, including members of the royal family
have tried to convince the Olu of Warri to change his
mind on the matter, but the King has so far said there's
no going back on his decision.
On Sunday 8th Sept, angry Itsekiri youths took to the
streets in Warri to register their displeasure on the
Olu's new belief. The protest could have turned bloody
but for for the timely intervention of Governor
Uduaghan, who is also an itsekiri. He appealed to the
youths to stay calm, promising that the issue would be
addressed.
No fewer than 5000 women are expected to embark on
a protest today in Warri against the monarch.