…pleads with monarch to allow his mother to return after six months of banishment
Strong indications have emerged that all is not well within the palace of the Oba of Benin, as the Crown Prince Ezelekhae has written a letter, pleading with his father to end the banishment of his mother and siblings from the palace in the past six months.
Below are the full details of the Crown Prince’s letter to the Benin monarch, his father:
Over the last few weeks I’ve received an alarming amount of messages about the welfare of my mother. I really appreciate your concern but rest assured she is being cared for. Before the year ends, I choose to address this simply because I wouldn’t allow false narratives about why my mother isn’t in the palace.
I want to make it very clear; my mother did nothing wrong. 6 months ago my youngest brother allegedly badged into the palace wanting to see his father; our father wasn’t happy with his approach as a result my mother was told to leave the palace.
Our Dear Father, Domo, I will like to use this medium to plead on behalf of your senior children you wouldn’t see. Your second son, your third son and your second daughter: Please, whatever our Father said they all did wrong please forgive and forget. Time is precious. We want togetherness not division.
As for me, my own Father intentionally chose to compose a speech and talk about his eldest son for a whole 5 minutes, to wash me publicly over material things, objects, artefacts, a museum, Obaseki.
You said Obaseki co-opted your eldest son. Translation:
Domo, our Father omitted to mention the part where you were aware and gave your blessing for me to be on the Legacy Restoration Trust. It was after I got to Germany, that my father then told me on the phone that he had changed his mind about me being on the board, I remember being so befuddled and shocked. There is no way on this earth I would ever be a part of something of this magnitude without getting Greenlight from you, on God and our Ancestors.
I tried informing you a few times before I left to Germany but as our father recalls you choose to put middlemen in between our direct communication, which meant you never got my message on time. You didn’t give anyone your direct number, so I couldn’t pick up the phone to inform you personally beforehand.
What really caused the issue between my father and I, was that while I was in Germany I overheard my father say unpleasant things about me to a public figure on the phone, i got upset and raised my voice to my father, something I’ve never done in my entire life. Hence why i aforementioned, I’m only human.
Afterwards I realised the mistake I made, I pleaded and apologised for 4 years straight, wrote countless remorseful letters but yet you chose not to forgive but rather keep malice for this long.
I didn’t know you had this kind of mind towards your own son, your first son if I may add. Why not just call and berate/castigate me privately, after all, I said I was sorry several times, after all no one knew about this but you and I, it was a Father and son issue…that was it, something private, sensitive but infinitesimal.
You’ve always taught us not to air our dirty laundry out in public but that teaching went out the window that day in government house. You chose to bring our private business to the public domain, which was so sad and heartbreaking to watch. My senior sister being on stage with you, made me question her intentions towards me and that’s a horrible feeling.
If our father feels there was nothing wrong with what was said that day then who am I to say or think otherwise.
Domo. I’ll deal with however you decide to treat me but please don’t mistreat our mother. I worry about her sometimes, she’s not as young as she use to be, my mother has done nothing wrong, she has stood by you for years, raised your children with you for years. She’s mother to all, just as you are Father and King to all. Please she doesn’t deserve this treatment, the year is coming to an end, I’m on my knees, let our mother back into her Home.
To our leaders as we enter 2026, I pray for unity, togetherness, progress, development and peace. Positive projection of Edo should be priority!
