Ondo residents of Ipesi Akoko in Akoko East Local Government Area on Sunday protested against the inability of the State Government to appoint a monarch for the community.

It was gathered that the community has been without a king for the past 16 years after the demise of their monarch.

The protesters, comprising youths and women, who were chanting various solidarity songs, said the community had not been witnessing development as a result of the monarch’s absence.

Some of the placards of the protesting carried inscriptions such as ‘we don’t need Lagos Regent,’ ‘We need an oba’, ‘Ipesi has suffered enough give us an Oba,’ ’16 years without an oba, no more Lagos regent.’Speaking, one of the protesters and Youth Leader Mr Katola Kayode said Ebomi Lake one of the flourishing tourist centres in the state is now abandoned and neglected due to lack of monarch.

He said, “Appointment of a regent is very alien to Ipesi tradition, we don’t want regent again, we want an Oba.”

A former supervising councillor in Akoko South-East Local Government and indigene of the community, Mr Awolumate Akinwale, said the community might not witness development until an oba is installed.

“We are appealing to the state government to wade into this matter, we need an Oba,” he urged.