Habeeb Hamzat Adelaja (Peller)
• Insist, no prior approval issued
From our Bureau Chief, Benin
The controversy trailing the said unauthorized visit of content creator; Hamzat Adelaja (Peller) and his manager to the Palace of the Benin Monarch HRM Oba Ewuare II seems not to end soon.
This is as the Benin Traditional Council (BTC) on Monday, 23 March, 2026 made a clarification on the claim by the accused persons that a letter requesting approval of the visit was earlier written to the secretariat of the Palace and was appropriately acknowledged with a date.
The clarification was contained in a statement by the BTC secretary, Frank Irabor and circulated amongst journalists in Benin.
The BTC insists that Peller and his manager’s visit was abominable and unauthorised.
Ordinarily, the Benin tradition would not warrant further engagement on such matters but given the level of misinformation and ignorance displayed by the said Peller and his manager, it has become necessary to set the record straight, it was stated.
Irabor pointed out that it is a well-known principle in any establishment that the submission of a letter of request and its mere stamping or acknowledgement, does not translate to approval.
He added; that these are standard institutional protocols and administrative procedures.
“For the avoidance of doubt the Benin Traditional Council reiterates that the receipt and stamping of any correspondence by its secretariat only serve as acknowledgment of receipt and do not in any way imply approval by His Royal Majesty or the Benin Traditional Council.
“In the absence of explicit authorization, no visit or activity is deemed sanctioned.”
He therefore challenged Peller and his manager to state publicly whether any formal written approval was granted to them.
As he further stated: “and also pertinent to ask whether their letter of request disclosed any intention to visit any of the Iloi( Queens).”
He however stressed: as previously communicated, matters arising from the unauthorized visit are currently undergoing disciplinary proceedings.
“Even as Peller has been invited to the Palace of the Oba of Benin, the Council will not be drawn into public discourse on issues already being addressed through the appropriate internal channels.”
Irabor asserts; that “the Benin Traditional Council remains resolute in upholding the customs, traditions and sanctity of the Benin Royal Palace.”
Previously in the social media space, the affected Queen push back as published by one of the Nigerian daily newspapers, had widely circulated.
The publication wrote: “in a swift public rebuttal, Queen Ewuare took to her TikTok account (@queen_ewuare-_backup) on Thursday, 19 March, 2026 to contest the council’s claims, insisting that the narrative being circulated was misleading.
Queen Ewuare
“Sharing what she described as documentary evidence, the queen posted a copy of a letter bearing an acknowledgement stamp from the Benin Traditional Council, which she said proved that Peller’s visit had been formally communicated to the Palace ahead of time.
“The queen explained that the controversy surrounding Peller’s presence at the Palace was influenced by misleading claims from the BTC.
The Queen was further quoted: “Hello everyone, the issues at hand aren’t just because Peller came to the Palace or because I gifted him; a lot has been happening behind closed doors.
“The Benin Traditional Council lied that Peller’s visit was unauthorised and that I brought him to the Palace. I hope I will be able to convince you all that Peller’s visit was authorised.
“Look at the stamp on this letter; it shows it was received by the Benin Traditional Council, but they’re all lying against me. But this isn’t even the main problem; there are other issues far bigger than what you all think,” she was said to have written.
The disputed letter
The document said to have been shared by the queen, was observed to carry a stamp and signature indicating it was received by the BTC on February 23, 2026.
Titled; ‘Courtesy Visit’ and addressed to Oba Ewuare II, the letter was signed by Uyiekpen Ogiefa. It formally notified the Palace of Peller’s planned visit to Benin and requested a brief audience with the monarch, it was said.
“With utmost respect and humility, we write to formally inform the Palace of the planned visit of a very prominent online streamer, Peller to Benin, and to the revered Palace of the Oba of Benin on March 3, 2026,” the letter was quoted to have partly read.
In the same vein, Peller’s team were reported to have issued a statement on Instagram.
The team were said to have insisted that due process was followed and that the visit was not intended to disrespect the Benin culture.
“According to the statement, a formal request was submitted on February 23 for a courtesy visit initially scheduled for March 3 but later shifted to March 6.
“The team acknowledged that they were informed in advance that the Oba would not be available, but were nonetheless permitted to visit and were received by the Palace representatives.”
