Although the royal family has not officially announced his death, palace sources revealed to the media that the monarch died on Wednesday.
The traditional ruler of Asaba, the Delta state capital, His Royal Majesty, Obi Joseph Chike Edozien, is dead.
Although the royal family has not officially announced his death, palace sources revealed to the media that the monarch died on Wednesday.
His demise comes barely five months before his 100th birthday in July this year.
Edozien, who was the 13th Asagba of Asaba, spent 33 years on the throne.
In his New Year and the kick-start of his centenary birthday message, the monarch urged the government to fight corruption and review the country’s constitution.
He said, “I believe that Nigeria can be a very great nation.
“We need peace and development in Nigeria. And one of the major problems and setbacks in Nigeria is corruption. We need to fight corruption squarely.”
Lamenting the “bad economy” of the country which was making people Nigerians suffer, he called for a fight against poverty.
“At the time of independence, what we had was $2 to N1, but today, we have $1 to over N1,000. How can you survive in this economy?” he asked.