When the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, married six wives within six weeks in October of 2022, it was evident that his new wives would start producing babies in no time. The Ooni of Ife had only one daughter, Adeola, when he was a teenager, age 19. He became the traditional ruler and monarch of the Yoruba kingdom of Ile-Ife in August 2015. He welcomed his second child, a son, with his now estranged wife, Olori Naomi Silekunola, in November 2020. Sadly, when Olori Naomi announced separation in December of 2021, one year after welcoming her son, heartbroken Ooni of Ife took a year to nurse his loss before finally marrying six new wives a year later, including princess Afolashade Ashley, who was reportedly the Ooni’s side chick for many years.
Interestingly, the beautiful ebony Queen welcomed her first child with the Ooni in September of 2024. Amidst hearty congratulations from her friends, family, and followers, have been dragging the UK-trained accountant for coveting a title that already belongs to Queen Naomi’s son, Tadenikawo.
It’s no secret that the self-styled Alpha Female loves competing with her co-wives in the Ife-palace. According to reports, Olori Asheley enjoyed the longest relationship with Oba Ogunwusi until he finally made it official in 2022. Before Prophetess Naomi came into the picture, the then-single mother of one was already in the Ooni’s life. Since fate finally made their union official, Olori Ashley, known for her flair for fashion and style, is fond of praising and worshipping the Ooni, pouring encomium on him like he is the love of her life. More so, the Queen Consort loves to brag that she has a superior connection to the monarch because she is a daughter of the soil and a princess born to a royal family in Ile-Ife, despite being the fourth wife of the king. When former Queen Naomi left the Ooni and the Palace, there were rumours that Queen Ashley was responsible, a claim that has never been denied or confirmed by all parties involved.
Many people have dismissed these allegations before now, but they are becoming believable now. Are we about to witness the biggest palace rivalry of all time? How is Queen Naomi reacting to Queen Ashley’s claims?
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When the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi Ojaja II, took Princess Ashley Afolashade as his fourth wife on October 15 2022, many people grumbled that she was a single mother not fit for a palace. Even though she, too, was a royal blood. Amidst the stigmatisation at the time, some rudely pointed out that the queen only had one child, a daughter, and it could be a sign that she had fertility problems and would only give birth to female children. Interestingly, almost two years later, the royal couple shut down all their haters and welcomed their first child.
The delighted monarch posted the good news on his Instagram page on September 3, 2024, revealing that the newborn is a boy and the youngest prince of Ile-Ife.
“Ooniadimulaife To God be the glory great things he has done. Hearty congratulations to the entire House of Oduduwa and Olori Folashade, who today birthed a Prince from the mother side of Ooni Adagba Royal Compound of Lafogido Ruling House and father side of Ooni Agbedegbede Royal Compound of Giesi Ruling house combined to the Royal throne of Oduduwa,” the Ooni wrote in the caption. Further in the post, the first-class Yoruba king reassured his followers that both mother and child were doing well.
Without a doubt, many fans and followers of the Royal couple couldn’t be more surprised by the good news, especially because Queen Ashley didn’t hint at being pregnant during the past nine months. Of course, there have been expectations from the onset of the marriage, going by how the self-styled Aya Oosha packaged herself as the most cherished wife of the monarch. Unlike any other Queen, Olori Ashley has always separated herself as the most special, blessed, accomplished, fashionable, and perhaps the one with the deepest connection to the Ooni. Naturally, many assumed the Ebony Queen would be getting more time with Oba Ogunwusi in his bed chamber and be the first of his latest six wives to welcome a baby. Unfortunately, Olori Tobi, the youngest wife of the Monarch, on March 2024, welcomed twins, a boy and a girl, with the monarch.
Well, it looks like Olori Ashley’s ancestors did not turn their back on her, perhaps due to the many bottles of Fanta she seems fond of feeding them as she was next in line to bear a child for the king. On the heels of the Ooni announcement, the UK-trained accountant proudly revealed in an Instagram post that their son was born at the Princess Royal Hospital in London. The new mother further declared her son is the ‘Crown Prince’ to the throne of Oduduwa — a term many believe is her way of shading the other wives of her husband who thought they won by having sons before her.
“To God be the glory, great things he has done for my husband and me. I am happy to re-announce with my husband Ooniadimulaife the birth of our adorable prestigious royal son to the throne of our forebears, our CROWN PRINCE of the source of Oodua. Who we were blessed with and were born into this world today, September 3 2024, at Princess Royal Hospital London, United Kingdom. Even though the enemies tried in our relationship for about a decade, Olodumare has remained faithful in our lives,” she wrote.
According to the new mother, she lost a set of twins in 2023, all thanks to her enemies who were working hard. But the gods remained faithful and blessed her with a double-crowned prince. “Last year was a little dark as our set of twins gained their wings at 14 weeks, but Olodumare remained faithful. He said you need a son to carry your forbear lineage, a double Crown Prince. Now he has blessed us with our gorgeous son, who is not just a prince of the source but our Crown Prince from both sides of his parents,” she wrote.
Olori Ashley revealed that with her son, History has repeated itself. “Prince of the Giesi ruling house and Prince from the Lafogido ruling house are 2 of the four ruling houses in the Ile Ife kingdom who attain the throne of our forbears. Ose Olodumare, History has repeated itself on me and our beloved son and Crown Prince of the source of Oodua. Modupe Olodumare, mo ma roju ire re laye mi,” she wrote.
Following the announcement, the royal couple held the naming ceremony of their son at the Ooni’s palace in Ile Ife On September 10 2024, with the other queens, including Olori Tobi, Olori Mariam, Olori Temitope and Olori Ronke, in attendance. The new mom revealed on Instagram that the newly-born prince would be called Ademakinwa, Adefimihan, Adebiyi, Foladade, and Adewale. But as you may have guessed, Queen Ashley’s declaration that her son is the Crowned Prince did not go down with many, and it has sparked a wave of reactions on social media. Many users tackled the new mom for dragging a title that didn’t belong to her son. In their opinion, Tadenikawo from Ooni’s estranged wife, Naomi, is first entitled to the throne, followed by Prince Oreade from Olori Tobi.
On Instagram, one user asked, “If he is the crown prince, which is Tadenikawo, that is the first son? God will help you o.”
One user observed, “This Ashley is always in competition. Girl rest, your son isn’t even the first.”
One wrote, “A baby less than 24 hours and you’re already creating enemies for him. Ashley why?”
One added, “And the main Queen is sitting pretty and going about her ministry. Thank God she left.”
One wrote, “I see a lot of pepper spray in this post. Congrats my queen [I am glad all your labouring] on your relationship with the king [was not in vain]. Best news so far today.”
Also, a user observed, “I’m so happy Naomi left all the madness and unnecessary competition.”
One wrote, “Na this type person fit poison the other sons make her son be the crown prince.”
One wrote, “Ashley elejo wewe, you too talk. Go inside and breastfeed the baby. The king is married to six of you remember?”
One asked, “Who are all these low self-esteem ladies struggling for one man’s attention? Please train your kids to know their worth and be humble about it.”
One asked, “He loves you so much that you became his fourth wife? Even Naomi, who met you as a sidekick, overtook you to become a real wife. Yet you were still in the queue, overtaken by Mariam, Elizabeth, and Tobi. Abeg, carry your abelube self-esteem into the house.”
One wrote, “My husband or our husband?”
A Crown Prince is a prince who is first in line to the throne. As such, a crown prince is the first male child produced by a ruling monarch. In the case of the ruling Ooni of Ife, many pointed out that as far back as November 18 2020, Queen Naomi gave birth to the Ooni’s first son, Tadenikawo, who is indeed the Crowned Prince.
However, Olori Ashley has refused to accept the fact. Following the backlash, the Ebony Queen made a follow-up post on Instagram where she explained that her son is a prince from his mother’s side of Ooni Adagba’s royal compound of Lafogido’s ruling house and also a prince from his father’s side of Ooni Agbedegbede’s royal compound of Giesi’s ruling house. According to her, this makes her son, Ademakinwa, a double-crowned prince. Not only that. Olori Ashley stated that the Oduduwa royal throne at Ile-Ife resulted from the union of the two houses, and once again, History has repeated itself.
The Ebony Queen didn’t mince words. In her post, she added that she is speaking into existence what she wants for her son. “Call your children what you want them to be in life. Speak life into them, let them know their purpose and destiny. It is your right and duty as a mother. There is power in the tongue. Use it on your children without apology. Don’t let anyone make you feel pressured,” she wrote.
But the pressure is rising after many noticed the UK-trained accountant added #Emilokan hashtag to her post. The term, which means it’s my turn in Yoruba, was popularised by Bola Ahmed Tinubu before forcing himself to become president of Nigeria. Could this be Princess Ashley’s plans for her son, too, when the time comes? I guess we all will be waiting. Until then, we have to say that this one na real walaha. Someone, please play us Gobe by Davido.
Unsurprisingly, Queen Naomi, who isn’t a drama fan, ignored her estranged husband’s fourth wife. We guess this is her way of saying, “Dey play.”
Tell us guys, do you smell fire lurking around the Ooni of Ife Palace?
Are we about to witness the biggest palace rivalry of all time?
Is Queen Ashley right to declare her son the crown prince, or does Queen Naomi’s son own the title?
Finally, do you think this is a sign that Ebony, the Alpha Female Queen, was involved in Queen Naomi’s exit from the Palace?
