Ife and Modekeke Crisis: There have been controversies about the conflict between these two parties, which to date has remained a discussion in the Yoruba lineage. Historians believe that the major causes of their conflict (Ife and Modakeke) were land ownership, payment of land rent (Isakole), the establishment of local government, and the placement of its headquarters, all of which are reflected in cultural identity, economics,& politics. The most prominent causes were the creation of local government and the location of its headquarters. The Yoruba see Ife as their source, and they regard the Modakekes as their ‘landlords.’ Following the collapse of the Old Oyo empire in the 19th century, the latter migrated to the area. This was the underlying element in the Yoruba ethnic conflict that resulted in the deaths of thousands of people. History has it that the last incident that led to the crisis erupted as a result of Modakeke residents’ demand for their own local government council. In 1997, the late Sani Abacha’s military regime granted their demand by merging the former Ife North and Ife Central local governments to establish the Ife East Local Government. Ife residents wanted the new council’s headquarters to be in their neighbourhood, but Modakeke residents protested. Despite earlier hinting that Oke D. O. in Modakeke would be the location, the government announced Oke-Ogbo in Ile-Ife as the headquarters. People of Modakeke quickly protested the “cheating and unfairness,” and a full-fledged “war” occurred, with hundreds of people slain on both sides and hundreds of homes, automobiles, and other properties destroyed. The killings persisted until 2000, when then-President Olusegun Obasanjo established a commission led by Olabode George to investigate the intercommunal violence.
How was the Ife-Modakeke Conflict resolved? In March 2000, Nigerian former President Olusegun Obasanjo announced a government-brokered truce and the formation of a 27-member peace committee in an effort to settle the long fight over land rights. In addition, the two towns were subjected to a dusk-to-dawn curfew, and hundreds of armed riot police were sent to enforce the truce. A peace accord was also struck in February 2009 between Ife and Modakeke. The Ogunsua of Modakeke was elevated to the rank of Oba as a result of this peace deal. Also, the Osun State Government, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, Olubuse II, and the Ogunsua of Modakeke, Francis Adedoyin, signed the deal.
