THE EVACUATION OF APOMU

We have seen above that the people of Apomu being Ifes allied themselves with Maye at the Gbanamu war, hence after the destruction of Erunmu, they were afraid that the next wave will overwhelm themselves. They therefore sent an Oyo resident at Apomu, chief Agbeni by name, to encamp on the further side of the river Osun as an outpost, to watch and report upon the movements of the Ibadan army.

But the Ibadans were not meditating any revenge on them; yet they were so ill at ease that they would not even wait for a report from their outpost, but one chief after another, one master of a large compound after another deserted the town for Ipetumodu till only the Oyo refugees remained at Apomu.

At Ipetumodu they were however restless; it seemed unreasonable that they should be famishing in another town when food could be obtained in their own farms; therefore bands of pillagers and kidnappers issued daily from Ipetumodu to the Apomu farms destroying whatever they could not carry away. They also grew suspicious of Agbeni and sent a strong force to drive him away from the post where they had located him. But Agbeni was determined to maintain his ground, and he therefore despatched messengers to Ibadan to ask for help.