A man identified as Stephen Nyitse on Saturday at the JS Stadium Gboko outsmarted security men and sat on the stool prepared for the coronation of the 5th Tor Tiv, Prof. James Ayatse.
The incident occurred despite high security both within and outside the stadium with roads leading to the stadium blocked, while dignitaries were conveyed to the venue in buses.
Speaking to security personnel under interrogation, Nyitse said he was prompted by God to cleanse the stool for the new king.
”I sat on the stool in order to cleanse it and make it comfortable for the incoming Tor Tiv”, he claimed.
Retired Brig.-Gen. Atom Kpera, the Chairman, Central Planning Committee for the coronation, who later arrived the scene, ordered security men to take the man outside and punish him.
Ayatse had declined to take his oath of office before “Swem”, the traditional god of the Tiv land.
Ayatse, a former Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, and University of Mkar, had instead opted to be sworn in as the fifth Tor Tiv with the Bible.
Chairman of the Planning Committee for the Coronation of the Tor Tiv V, Atom Okpera, made the disclosure at a press conference in Gboko, Benue State on Thursday.
The Swem, according to Tiv tradition, adjudicates disputes among Tiv people without fear or favour, ensuring justice irrespective of economic, political and social status of the parties to a dispute.
Prof Ayatse is said to be a member of the Deeper Life Bible Church.
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