The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, has given the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, 48 hours to withdraw the title of Okanlomo of Yorubaland recently conferred on Ibadan businessman Dotun Sanusi, popularly known as Ilaji.
In a statement signed by his spokesperson, Bode Durojaiye, the Alaafin described the Ooni’s action as “an affront” to his throne, stressing that only the Alaafin holds the authority to bestow titles that cover the entire Yoruba nation.
He further accused the Ooni of ignoring a Supreme Court ruling, which, according to him, clearly affirmed that the conferment of any pan-Yoruba chieftaincy is the exclusive prerogative of the Alaafin.
“The conferment of chieftaincy title which borders on Yorubaland by the Ooni of Ife is not only an affront to the referred institution of the Alaafin, who is the Titan of Yorubaland, and on whom holds exclusive right to confer any chieftaincy title which covers the entire Yorubaland on anyone,” the statement read.
The monarch maintained that the Ooni’s traditional authority is restricted to his immediate domain in Ife, which he noted was formerly Oranmiyan Local Government but now divided into Ife Central, Ife North, and Ife South. Anything beyond that boundary, he argued, renders such a conferment invalid.
“The Ooni of Ife is behaving as if there is no authority to check and call him to order, and because of that ‘above the law’ syndrome of his, he is in the habit of walking on everybody’s back, including the apex court in the country, the Supreme Court, which had ruled on the exclusive preserve of the Alaafin to confer chieftaincy titles that covers the entire Yorubaland on anyone,” the statement added.
He warned that if the title is not revoked within 48 hours, there would be “dire consequences,” stressing that his restraint should not be mistaken for weakness. “The instrument of office presented to Oba Ogunwusi during his installation specifically limits his traditional area of authority to Oranmiyan Local Government, which has now been split into three local governments, viz., Ife Central, Ife North, and Ife South,” the Alaafin noted.
He concluded, “The dictum that nobody is above the law of the land is now being put to a crucial test, and the reality of our time makes it very obligatory for the Alaafin to call the Ooni of Ife to order and demand revocation of the so-called Okanlomo of Yorubaland chieftaincy title conferred on Engineer Dotun Sanusi within 48 HOURS or face the consequences.”
The development has widened cracks between the two foremost Yoruba thrones, with analysts warning it could inflame deeper tensions among traditional institutions already weakened by political interference under Tinubu’s government.
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