Gospel singer Toluwanisings has been laid to rest in Ibadan following a police-brokered agreement that ended a three-week disagreement between his widow and father over the location and arrangements for his burial.
The late singer, whose real name was Olayemi Bayonle Bolaji, was scheduled to be buried on Monday, November 9, at his residence in Ibadan, where his wife and children live.
The resolution followed a peace agreement signed on Tuesday, November 3, at the Oyo State Police Command headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan.
Those involved in the dispute included his widow, Olayemi Elizabeth Damilola, and his father, Muniru Olayemi, alongside other relatives and associates.
The disagreement arose over where the singer should be buried. While his father reportedly preferred the family compound or the house the deceased built, his widow favoured a cemetery burial.
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Other members of his paternal family also called for the burial to be suspended pending an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.
His uncle, Lawal Rauf, had said the family preferred to take the remains to Ikirun, Osun State, where he could be buried beside his mother.
The disagreement eventually attracted police intervention after exchanges between members of the family generated tensions on social media and other public platforms.
In a statement announcing the resolution, the police said the dispute had generated “tensions and exchanges across various public communication platforms”.
The command said the parties agreed to stop granting interviews and making public comments about the disagreement.
They also undertook not to circulate accusations through relatives, representatives or social media accounts.
The agreement was aimed at preventing further confrontation amid concerns about allegations of conspiracy, defamation and “conduct likely to cause a breach of the peace”.
Following the intervention, the family settled on burying the singer at his Ibadan residence.
The funeral programme, announced on his official Instagram page, scheduled the lying-in-state for 9 am to 10 am and the burial service for 10am to 11am at Banjola Event and Conference Centre in Alakia.
Toluwanisings died in the early hours of Wednesday, October 14. His death sparked widespread reactions among gospel music fans and colleagues.
He was particularly known for his spontaneous worship ministrations and the popular song, Kabiyesi Olorun Ayo.
The singer built a substantial online following, with his Audiomack profile recording more than 45.6 million plays and over 513,000 followers.
Although the burial disagreement has been resolved, questions raised by his paternal family about the circumstances surrounding his death remain a separate issue.
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