Why TikToker who filmed Oloolu festival was spiritually cleansed — Family secretary

The Oloolu family in Ibadan, Oyo State, has explained the spiritual cleansing rites performed on TikToker Wasilat Olalere after she recorded activities during the annual Oloolu masquerade festival. Oluwo Ishola Akeem, the Secretary of the Oloolu compound, detailed the circumstances surrounding the incident in an interview.

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Last year, Wasilat videoed Oloolu but wasn’t able to capture it well. But this very year, on the last day of the masquerade festival that Oloolu usually comes out to display, when Oloolu got to their area, she dressed like a male to capture the masquerade. She videoed the followers and entourage but couldn’t capture the masquerade himself. She then posted the video on TikTok and captioned, ‘This is Oloolu at Sokoto area.’ When we saw it, we went to her, and she confessed. She said she had been ill since she committed the act.

Olalere had posted a video on TikTok showing the masquerade's followers, captioned "This is Oloolu at Sokoto area." This action violated longstanding customs that prohibit the public from filming the revered masquerade. According to Akeem, Olalere had attempted to record the festival the previous year but was unsuccessful. This year, she reportedly disguised herself as a man to capture the event, though she could only film the entourage, not the masquerade itself.

Following the confession and the subsequent illness she claimed to have experienced, Olalere was taken to the Oloolu family compound to undergo traditional cleansing rites. She deleted the video from her TikTok page and expressed regret, vowing not to repeat the action. Akeem confirmed that Olalere has completed the rites and returned home, dismissing social media rumors of her death.

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For the sake of peace, so that she would not be beaten, we took her away from her home and took her to the police station so that the tension could subside. She deleted the video and pictures, although some of us still have copies. She confessed to recording the video and posting it online.

"She is not dead. Wasilat is alive. She is now in their house at Oremeji. She has been redeemed. Nothing will happen to her again. She is free now and has said she will not do such again," Akeem stated. He added that Olalere expressed remorse and might avoid the area during future festivals.

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She is not dead. Wasilat is alive. She is now in their house at Oremeji. She has been redeemed. Nothing will happen to her again. She is free now and has said she will not do such again. She regretted her decision and said she would never repeat it. She also said she might leave Ibadan whenever the festival is approaching.