The female TikTok content creator at the centre of the controversy surrounding the annual Oloolu Masquerade Festival in Ibadan, Oyo State, has denied reports that she filmed the sacred Oloolu masquerade, insisting that she neither recorded the revered traditional figure nor died as widely speculated on social media. Speaking via telephone during an interview on Lagelu FM’s Ibi Aye N Lo programme hosted by Adesoye Omotosho on Monday, the woman, identified as Wasilat, also dismissed rumours of her death. “I am not dead. I did not capture the Oloolu masquerade. May I not be implicated; I did not record Oloolu. “What happened that day, last Thursday, around the Oremeji axis, I don’t know what prompted me to go to our shop because I was at home. “When I got to the shop, I didn’t even open it. I just stayed in front of the shop because we had packed up from that area. “When I saw people passing, I saw an Amotekun vehicle passing. Oloolu did not even pass through that route. “So I filmed it and posted it on social media. Everyone in the TikTok comment section asked me to delete it. The following day, while I was at the shop, they came to meet me there. “I do not know why the eyewitnesses on Thursday did not defend me. I don’t know who came up with that agenda, but I know God will judge,” she said. The incident sparked widespread reactions after videos surfaced online showing her undergoing traditional cleansing rites at the Oloolu compound. Speaking with PUNCH Online on Monday, the spokesperson to the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Chief Adeola Oloko, said the woman did not record the sacred Oloolu masquerade itself but mistakenly captured Alawo Oloolu, a figure associated with the Oloolu tradition. “She did not capture Oloolu; she mistook it for Alawo. We contacted the Mogaji of the Oloolu compound, and he confirmed that a woman who mistook Alawo of Oloolu for the real Oloolu masquerade captured it on the street,” Oloko said. He added that after uploading the footage, the woman reportedly developed unusual health challenges, prompting her family to seek intervention from the traditional custodians. “After posting it, she realised the blood in her body began to dry. So her family reached out to the Oloolu people immediately, and they attended to her in accordance with the tradition of the land. “We have told people to obey simple instructions; women are not supposed to see Oloolu, but out of curiosity, she disobeyed,” he said. Oloko, however, said he could not verify claims circulating on social media that the woman disguised herself as a man to secretly record the procession. “I cannot confirm she disguised herself as a man. Those are accounts on social media. But she took the footage or photo on the street,” he added. Videos circulating online showed what appeared to be a public traditional cleansing ceremony, with the content creator surrounded by traditional worshippers. She was seen with her head shaved, dressed in red garments and participating in rituals, while giant African snails and a ram were reportedly presented as part of the prescribed rites. Another video also showed what appeared to be a goat slaughtered during the ceremony, while social media users claimed her mother appealed to the traditional custodians for mercy on her behalf. Meanwhile, Ibadan-based content creator, Ayo Adams, who visited the Oloolu compound, said officials confirmed the woman was alive and recovering. The annual Oloolu Festival attracts traditional rulers, worshippers, cultural enthusiasts and visitors from across Yorubaland. The festival features prayers, rituals, sacrifices, drumming, dancing and processions aimed at honouring ancestors while seeking peace, protection, prosperity and communal wellbeing. PUNCH Online had also reported that the palace of the Olubadan of Ibadanland released the movement schedule for the 2026 Oloolu Masquerade Festival, detailing the communities the masquerade visited between July 28 and July 30.
