TikToker Undergoes Traditional Cleansing After Filming Oloolu Masquerade
A female TikTok content creator, identified as Wasilat Olalere, has undergone a traditional cleansing ritual at the Oloolu family compound in Ibadan, Oyo State, after she recorded and shared footage from this year’s Oloolu Masquerade Festival, sparking widespread debate over the filming of sacred traditional practices in the digital age.
The controversy began after a video Olalere posted on her TikTok page, showing the masquerade’s followers and entourage moving through the Sokoto area of Ibadan, captioned “This is Oloolu at Sokoto area,” began circulating widely online. The footage generated intense reaction, with many social media users unaware that public filming of the revered masquerade is strictly prohibited under longstanding Yoruba traditional customs governing the festival.
Speaking with Punch Online, Chief Adeola Oloko, spokesperson for the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, clarified that Olalere did not actually record the sacred Oloolu masquerade itself, but had mistakenly captured Alawo Oloolu, a separate figure associated with the tradition, while it moved through the streets. The Secretary of the Oloolu compound, Oluwo Ishola Akeem, further explained in a separate interview that when the family became aware of the video, they approached Olalere, who subsequently confessed to recording and sharing the footage despite the customs prohibiting members of the public from filming the revered figure.
The Oloolu family also alleged that Olalere had previously attempted, unsuccessfully, to record the masquerade during the previous year’s festival, and claimed she had returned this year disguised as a man in another attempt to capture the procession, an allegation Oloko said he could not independently verify.
Videos circulating online showed what appeared to be a public cleansing ceremony, with Olalere seen with her head shaved and dressed in red garments while surrounded by traditional worshippers. Ritual items, including giant African snails, a ram, and a goat, were reportedly presented as part of the prescribed rites, with another video showing what appeared to be a goat being slaughtered during the ceremony.
The incident has since drawn sharp criticism from some public figures. African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore condemned the episode in a Facebook post, describing it as a violation of human dignity and arguing that any cultural or religious practice that oppresses or discriminates against individuals should be abandoned, regardless of tradition. He said the treatment meted out to Olalere amounted to abuse, though he similarly could not confirm the disguise allegations circulating online.
Amid the controversy, Olalere herself later spoke out, denying that she had filmed the sacred masquerade or that any of the widely circulated rumours of her death were true. Speaking via telephone on a local Ibadan radio programme, she stated plainly that she was not dead and pushed back against elements of the narrative that had spread online, though the precise details of her account continue to be weighed against the versions offered by the Oloolu family and traditional authorities.
The Oyo State Police Command said it had no official record of the incident, noting that the matter had not been reported to any nearby station. The annual Oloolu Festival, celebrated by descendants of the Oloolu lineage, attracts traditional rulers, worshippers, and cultural enthusiasts from across Yorubaland, and features prayers, rituals, sacrifices, drumming, and processions intended to honour ancestors while seeking peace, protection, and communal wellbeing.
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