Inside Alaafin, Ooni’s renewed supremacy battle

The age-long supremacy battle between the two major traditional stools in Yorubaland reared its ugly head again yesterday. The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade’s 48-hour ultimatum to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, to revoke the Okanlomo of Yorubaland chieftaincy title he conferred on Ibadan business tycoon Dotun Sanusi, had reopened debate and […]

The age-long supremacy battle between the two major traditional stools in Yorubaland reared its ugly head again yesterday.

The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade’s 48-hour ultimatum to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, to revoke the Okanlomo of Yorubaland chieftaincy title he conferred on Ibadan business tycoon Dotun Sanusi, had reopened debate and bitter rivalry between the highly revered monarchs.

Owoade argued that the Ooni’s instrument of office restricts his authority to three council areas in Osun State and that he has acted “unlawfully, derogatorily, and in contempt of the apex court.”

He warned that unless the title is revoked within 48 hours, the Ooni should be prepared to face unspecified “consequences.”

The development has reopened a long-running rivalry between the Oyo and Ife thrones.

Ile-Ife is widely acknowledged as the ancestral home of the Yoruba people, and according to Yoruba mythology, it is the birthplace of Oduduwa, the progenitor of the Yoruba race. The Ooni of Ife is regarded as the direct successor of Oduduwa, embodying the spiritual leadership of the Yoruba nation.

Historical accounts and traditional beliefs position the Ooni as the custodian of Yoruba spirituality and culture.

Contrasting the spiritual significance of Ile-Ife, the Oyo Empire emerged as a formidable political and military force between the 17th and 19th centuries.

According to historians, the Alaafin of Oyo wielded considerable influence, overseeing an expansive empire that extended beyond Yoruba territories. Alaafin’s role as a political leader was solidified through these structures, distinguishing his authority from the spiritual leadership of the Ooni.

Sources said the interplay between the spiritual authority of the Ooni and the political dominance of the Alaafin has historically led to periods of both cooperation and conflict.

While the Ooni maintained spiritual primacy, the Alaafin’s political reach often challenged this status, leading to complex power dynamics within the Yoruba traditional hierarchy.

Colonial and post-colonial eras further influenced these dynamics, according to reports. The British colonial administration’s policies and the subsequent creation of new states altered traditional power structures, affecting the roles and recognition of both monarchs.

The debate over who holds greater authority between the Ooni and the Alaafin continues to resonate among the Yoruba people. The question of which is the most supreme stool within the Yoruba race has always pitted the occupants of the Alaafin and Ooni thrones against each other.

Daily Trust reports that the supremacy battle and bitter rivalry were fierce during the reigns of the immediate past Alaafin, late Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, and late Ooni Okunade Sijuwade.

 

Adeyemi vs Sijuwade

Yesterday, reports surfaced online on how the duo of Adeyemi and Sijuwade squared up in 1991 over the conferment of Akinrogun of Yorubaland on the then national chairman of the National Republican Convention, Chief Tom Ikimi.

The late Alaafin warned Ikimi against accepting the chieftaincy title from the late Ooni of Ife.

Oba Adeyemi stated in a letter addressed to Ikimi, a copy of which was distributed to newsmen in Ibadan in 1991, that the title was spurious and lacked a historical foundation.

He explained that his objection to the conferment and acceptance of the title was not meant to slight the NRC leader, but to prevent Ikimi from being made “a laughing stock”.

The then Oyo State Governor, Colonel AbdulKareem Adisa, told Oba Sijuwade not to confer the chieftaincy title on Ikimi.

Oba Sijuwade, however, insisted that he would proceed with the conferment despite the governor’s directive.

A press statement from the Ooni’s palace, barely three hours after the governor’s directive, said Ikimi would be conferred with the title.

The statement, signed by Ooni’s second in command, Chief S. F. Omisakin, said the letter written by the Oba to Ikimi read that he (Ikimi) would be conferred with the title of Akinrogun of Ife.

He maintained that the letter said Ikimi would be conferred with “Akinrogun from the source (lle-Ife)” and wondered where the Alaafin got his own version of Akinrogun of Yorubaland.

The Oyo State Government, on March 9, 1991, later gave the Ooni of Ife the “go-ahead” to confer the title of Akinrogun of Ile-Ife on Ikimi.

 

Owoade vs Ogunwusi

In what appeared to be a repeat of history, the reigning Alaafin and Ooni are at daggers drawn over the conferment of a title.

Oba Owoade, on Monday, gave Ooni Ogunwusi a 48-hour ultimatum to revoke the Okanlomo of Yorubaland chieftaincy title he reportedly conferred on Ibadan business tycoon Dotun Sanusi.

“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,” a statement by Bode Durojaiye, Director of Media and Publicity to the Alaafin, said.

The statement maintained that only the Alaafin has the exclusive right to confer any chieftaincy title which covers the entire Yorubaland on anyone.

The statement said the apex court in the country, the Supreme Court, had ruled on the exclusive preserve of the Alaafin to confer chieftaincy titles that cover the entire Yorubaland on anyone.

 

Ooni won’t respond – Palace Spokesperson

The spokesperson for Ooni of Ife, Moses Olafare, said the Ooni will not react to the 48-hour threat by the Alaafin of Oyo.

Olafare, in a Facebook post on Tuesday, said the Ooni will not dignify what he described as “undignifiable” with an official response.

He said, “My principal has directed me against issuing a press release on the empty threat. I beg to disappoint you, gentlemen of the press.

“We cannot dignify the undignifiable with an official response. We leave the matter to be handled in the public court of opinion, as it is already being treated.

“Let’s rather focus on narratives that unite us rather than the ones capable of dividing us. No press release, please. 48 hours my foot!”

 

Dotun Sanusi: The holder of controversial title

Dotun Sanusi, the Jagun Olubadan of Ibadanland, is an entrepreneur with investments cutting across hospitality, agriculture, tourism, sports, and oil and gas. A graduate of Petroleum Engineering from the University of Ibadan, Sanusi is the Chief Executive Officer of TNL, Ilaji Hotels and Sports Resort, Ilaji Farms, ICAST Group of Schools.

Ahead of the 2027 election, there are reports that Sanusi may join the governorship race.

He asked his well-wishers and friends across the state to halt the subtle campaign and open display of affection to drag him into the 2027 gubernatorial contest in the state.

There are reports that the title of Okanlomo of Yoruba land was bestowed on Dotun Sanusi about five years ago, predating Oba Owoade, who ascended the throne recently.

The installation ceremony was put on hold because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This designation occurred when the Ooni attended a birthday reception organised for Sanusi who paid him a courtesy visit.

Oba Ogunwusi, in his welcome address during the visit, described Sanusi as someone who shares several qualities with him apart from being birthday mates, adding that, considering the activities of Sanusi towards community and humanitarian development in Oyo State, the Mogaji of Olugbade family would be installed as the Okanlomo of Yorubaland as soon as the pandemic was over.

A legal practitioner, Pelumi Olajengbesi, said no Supreme Court judgment gave the Alaafin exclusive right to bestow traditional titles that cover Yorubaland.

In a statement posted on his Facebook page on Tuesday, the lawyer said, “Beyond its surface provocation, the Alaafin’s order constitutes an impermissible assault on the very foundation of Yoruba heritage and seeks to revive a jurisdictional contest which neither law nor history sustains.

“The Ooni of Ife acted squarely within his lawful, ancestral, and cultural prerogatives. These prerogatives are sui generis, inherent, and incapable of usurpation by any other stool. They are not the product of conquest or temporal power but derive from the very normative foundation of Yoruba civilization.”

Olajengbesi said as a lawyer who has litigated disputes around chieftaincy law, he could affirm that no statute, Supreme Court judgment, or constitutional instrument vests exclusive pan-Yoruba jurisdiction in the Alaafin.

“The law recognises traditional rulers through state chieftaincy statutes, not residual claims of imperial conquest.

“With the greatest respect, the oft-cited Supreme Court decision that is now exaggerated and purportedly vested authority in the Alaafin must be properly confined to its facts,” he said.

A political scientist, Prof Emmanuel Ojo, described the controversy as needless, calling on Yoruba leaders to call the duo to order.

“I think the crisis, the rivalry between the two of them, is needless. Elders need to call them to order, and this is where the Yoruba council of elders, Afenfere, needs to quickly intervene.

“I want to believe that the age of the two of them may be the reason for the needless controversy. Ooni is a young man, Alaafin is a young man,” Ojo told Daily Trust.