I soiled myself when Tani Olohun was arrested — Isese activist’s mother

The mother of embattled traditionalist Abdulazeez Adegbola, aka Tani Olohun, Mrs Nofisat Adegbola, has revealed that she soiled herself three times on the night she learnt that her son was arrested by the police.

According to Adegbola, her initial thought was that Tani Olohun had been kidnapped.

“I soiled myself several times that night when he did not return home,” she said while speaking with our correspondent at her home in the Molete area of Ibadan in Oyo State.

The apartment houses Adegbola, her daughter-in-law, Rasheedat (Tani Olohun’s wife), and her two grandchildren, Azeezat and Abdulrasheed.

“I found out that my son had been kidnapped from Ibadan a day after it happened. No one knew what was happening until a day after he was nabbed from Ibadan and taken to Ilorin in Kwara state,” she said.

How it started

Adegbola, a famous online Isese activist, was arrested in Ibadan, Oyo State, and taken to Ilorin, Kwara State, by men of the Kwara State Police Command on the orders of the state Commissioner of Police.

The 37-year-old father of two was charged with defamation, insulting the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, and Islamic clerics in the state among other offences.

Although these charges, according to Ademola Banks, counsel for the defendant, are bailable, Abdulazzeez has remained behind bars since August 16.

Recount of August 15

Speaking further, Adegbola said, “My son had informed me around 5.57pm on Sunday that he needed to get to Bolaji quickly. I bade him farewell, instructing him not to stay out long. I even joked with him to buy something for me to eat. He said I should not worry, that he would do so.
“My kids do not stay out late. They know they must be home for the Maghrib prayer, which starts at 7 pm, and Isha prayer at 8pm. The minute the Isha prayer is over, I close shop for the day.

“All my children know that they must be in the house before I close my shop for the day.

“I kept waiting for him to return home; he didn’t show up. So I strolled towards the Odo-oba area, hoping to run into him; this didn’t happen either.

“By this time, I was overwhelmed with fear. Had he been kidnapped? What happened to my son?

“I went back home and woke everyone, telling them Azeez was not home. This was unlike him. In no time, I had begun to stool. I soiled myself multiple times that day, and by the next morning, I was being given a drip, and the nurse told me I was dehydrated.”

The discovery

Adegbola told our correspondent that her family found out that Tani Olohun had been arrested through the media.

She said, “My younger son arrived at my home the next day to inform me that Abdulazeez was ‘kidnapped’ here in Ibadan and had been taken to Ilorin. He said he read about this on BBC Yoruba.

“He also told me he was here to inform me that he was going to Ilorin. Before he got to Ilorin, Abdulazeez had been sentenced to 50 days at a correctional facility.

“My son has been behind bars since then; this is his third month in jail.”

Who is Tani Olohun?

Adegbola smiled as our correspondent asked her to describe her son. According to her, her son is unique and one of the funniest people she knows.

She recounted some of their evenings just outside their home, where he would entertain everyone who sat with the family outside to take the evening breeze.

“Assuming he is here, you would have been laughing so hard right now.

“He is a funny person and very kind. Azeez is a sweet and thoughtful child.

“Azeez is also educated. He attended primary and secondary schools before heading to the Federal Polytechnic Offa. After graduation, he began to learn photography and how to repair fridges,” Madam Adegbola said.

Visit to correctional centre

“I felt pain when I saw my son at the correctional facility in Offa; he looked nothing like he used to before,” Adegbola began before breaking down in tears.

“I saw him and I began to cry. He was a shadow of himself. He had lost much weight. His hands were thin, his legs pale. He was beaten and tortured. My son’s leg was swollen, as well as his wrist. He was in pain.

“I just wept at the figure that was before me, all I could do was weep,” she said.

Journey to Freedom

Reports emerged a few weeks ago that Adegbola had gone to Ilorin to plead with the Islamic clerics who sued her son.

She was seen in a viral video kneeling and begging for her son to be pardoned and freed soon.

Clarifying the reason behind her apology, Adegbola stated that she went on her own accord as a practising Muslim with the hope that her apology would be considered and her son would be released.

“I went on my own accord to plead with the alfas in Ilorin. I went with the belief that my faith, being a practising Muslim, would be considered, and my son would be freed.

“I thought my faith was enough to make them have a rethink and free my son but nothing of such has happened. Just last week, November 3, he was slammed with another lawsuit by a Muslim group that he burned a Quran,” Adegbola said.

PUNCH Online gathered that Abdulazeez, who on October 24, 2023, was slammed with three fresh defamation charges by an Islamic Cleric, Labeeb Lagbaji, received a fourth charge on Friday, November 3, following a petition by a Muslim group, Madrasat Muhammad, over claims that the activist burnt a Quran.

Adegbola, however, revealed that “The Isese community has been of great help. They paid the lawyer, Olobi’s appearance fee and saw that my son is fed daily.

“I live in Ibadan, and he is being detained in Ilorin. The Isese people make sure he is provided for daily. I am grateful for their kindness.

“This is what I sell, N5 biscuits and sweet,” Adegbola said, gesturing to the assortment of biscuits displayed on a table that served as her work table.

She added, “My husband, Abdulazeez’s father, died about three years ago, and it’s just been me and my kids.

“I had to borrow money to travel to Ilorin to beg the alfas; we have nothing. I am grateful to the Isese community for all their help; may God continue to bless them.

“They paid the lawyer, they also visit him regularly; I am grateful for everything they have been doing since this case started.”

Conversion to Isese

Adegbola disclosed that her son converted and became an adherent of Isese about three years ago.

She said, “He informed me of his decision to convert three years ago. I felt hurt when he told me. I was sad.

“We quarrelled about it for a while, but I started to rethink his wish when I saw the hand of God in his life.

“If he were here, he would have informed you of three meetings he needed to attend.

“He always had messages: ‘Olodumare asked me to do this, Olodumare asked me to do that.’ He was dedicated to knowing and experiencing God with his newfound faith, and I saw the hand of God in his life.”

 Tani Olohun’s wife

Also speaking with our correspondent, Rasheedat Adegbola, Tani Olohun’s wife said things have been tough since the arrest of her husband.

“I am not okay, I cry every day since his arrest,” Rasheedat, revealed when asked the question, “How have you been since his arrest?”

Speaking further with our correspondent, she said, “My name is Rasheedat Adegbola, the wife of Abdulazeez Adegbola, also known as Tani Olohun.

“Ade mi (my crown) is the kind of husband you pray for. He is a funny man who loved making me and the family laugh.

“We met about six years ago at my brother’s place. We have two children: my daughter, Azeezat Adegbola, 6, and my son, Abdulrasheed, 3.”

When asked how the children have been coping since Tani Olohun’s arrest, Rasheedat responded, saying the family has been managing. The children still attend school, but recently, her son has been falling ill a lot and asking for his father.

“My son has been ill lately, asking for his father,” she revealed as she pulled the young boy closer. The boy remained restless as he tried to get more cuddles from his mom.

“I am a nurse. We met while he was still in school. He has always been a funny and kind man, I miss him every day. No day goes by that I do not cry about our situation,” she said.

Rasheedat also disclosed that she married her husband as a practising Muslim.

“He was a Muslim when we met and only converted to an Isese worshiper three years ago.

“I just want my husband to come home; please free him. I believe that God’s will shall prevail in this case. We trust in God. God never fails,” she said.

Abdulazeez was arrested on August 16 from Sanyo, Ibadan, Oyo state, allegedly by plain-cloth policemen from the Kwara State Police Command.

At the time of this report, the Isese activist, who turns 37 in December, is facing four charges in four different courts in Kwara State: One upper magistrate court and three magistrate courts.

Abdulazeez is being charged with defamation, conspiracy, inciting public peace, and for burning a Quran.

According to the counsel for the defendant, all four charges are bailable. The religious colouration attached to this is why he remains in detention.

“We are working to secure his freedom,” the counsel told our correspondent.