The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade has condemned the brutal attack on Oloka Village and the killing of civilians and rangers within Old Oyo National Park, declaring it an assault on Yoruba sovereignty and ancestral heritage.

This is just as Oba Owoade canvassed the establishment of a military base in his domain as a means of ensuring that the issue would not occur again.

The monarch in a statement issued by his Director of Media and Publicity, Mr. Bode Durojaiye, made available to Saturday Telegraph, also sympathised with the families of the five slain forest guards who were attacked by yet-tobe-identified gunmen.

“The recent brutal killings inside Old Oyo National Park, especially the massacre at Oloka are not merely a ‘security breach.’ It is a dagger plunged into the heart of our ancestral empire.

Our sacred forests, our game reserves, our historic grounds where our kings once hunted with spears and drums are now being turned into slaughter yards by armed marauders.

This will not stand,” the monarch said. According to Oba Owoade, “Establishment of a military base, designation of Otefon Village as a permanent armed military base of the kingdom to fortify the region and secure the Oyo-Oduduwa corridor.

“Deployment of Yoruba Defense Force Battalion under joint command of the Nigerian Army and traditional warrior chiefs to patrol the park 24/7 and repel invaders.

“Federal Recognition: a call on the President and Ministry of Defence to declare Otefon a Strategic National Security Zone and fund construction of barracks, watchtowers, and helipad within next few months”.