WHEN the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs was revived after a long dormancy, it was meant to be a unifying platform — a meeting point between ancestral authority and modern governance.
Instead, it has reopened an old and sensitive question: who leads when history and politics intersect?
At the heart of the unfolding debate are four powerful figures — Governor Seyi Makinde, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Abimbola Owoade I; the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, and the Olugbon of Orile-Igbon, Oba Francis Alao — each representing different interpretations of tradition, authority, and the future of Yoruba kingship in Oyo State.
At the twilight of his tenure in 2011, former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala triggered controversy within the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs by stripping the former Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III, of his long-standing position as the permanent chairman of the council.
The development followed a legislative move orchestrated by the then governor, who prevailed on the Oyo State House of Assembly to amend the law regulating the state’s traditional institution.
Under the amended law, the late Oba Adeyemi, who had previously served as the sole chairman of the council, would no longer enjoy exclusive leadership of the body.
Instead, the chairmanship is to be shared on a rotational basis among three monarchs: the Alaafin of Oyo, the Soun of Ogbomoso, and the Olubadan of Ibadanland.
The chairmanship dispute had, for some time, generated tension within the council.
The Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Jimoh Adewumi, and the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Samuel Odulana, had repeatedly boycotted meetings convened by the Alaafin, insisting that they were equally entitled to preside over the council.
How Akala changed his decision
Ironically, at the beginning of his tenure, Governor Alao-Akala had publicly affirmed that the chairmanship of the council would remain the exclusive preserve of the Alaafin of Oyo, a position the Soun and the Olubadan openly rejected.
However, in a dramatic reversal, the former governor later cited Section 3(3) of the law establishing the Council of Obas and Chiefs to justify his decision to introduce rotational chairmanship among the three leading monarchs.
Many people then believed that Alao-Akala’s action was informed by the electoral outcomes, particularly the lack-lustre performance of the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the three local government areas under the jurisdiction of the Alaafin, all of which reportedly voted against the party in three previous elections.
The amended law was formally authenticated with the signatures of the then Clerk of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Overseer Olugboyega Adebolu, and the then Speaker of the House, Mr Moruf Atilola.
In addition, Governor Alao-Akala announced that the chairmanship of the council would rotate every two years, while the deputy chairmanship position would also be rotated among the Olugbon of Orile-Igbon, the Eleruwa of Eruwa, the Okere of Saki, and the Aseyin of Iseyin, in that order.
Late Ajimobi avoided a booby trap
During the eight-year tenure of the successor of Chief Alao-Akala, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, he cleverly avoided the booby trap, by ensuring the matter, which the late Oba Adeyemi challenged in the court of law, remained there till the end of his tenure.
Since the 2011 announcement by the late Alao-Akala, the Obas’Council did not sit again for any meeting.
Makinde resuscitated the council
Apparently acting on the gazetted amendment of the laws that guide the council, Governor Seyi Makinde took a bold step to revisit the issue of the Obas’ Council.
Governor Makinde said the resurrection of the Council was not just ceremonial; it was strategic.
He has framed traditional rulers as partners in governance — custodians of peace, community cohesion, and grassroots intelligence. To achieve balance across the state’s cultural zones, the governor announced a rotational chairmanship, beginning with the Olubadan of Ibadanland.
In Makinde’s reasoning, the structure reflects Oyo’s diversity: Ibadan, Oyo, Ogbomoso, Oke-Ogun, and Ibarapa all carry historical weight.
A rotational system, he argues, prevents dominance by any single throne and aligns traditional leadership with democratic sensibilities — fairness, inclusion, and shared responsibility.
To supporters of the policy, it is a pragmatic compromise in a plural state.
Alaafin boycotts meeting
If the inauguration of the council was meant to signal unity, the empty seat of the Alaafin of Oyo told a different story.
Oba Akeem Owoade I, custodian of the legacy of the Old Oyo Empire, did not attend the ceremony. In Yoruba tradition, absence is rarely accidental.
It is often a language of its own.
From the palace came a carefully worded response: the Alaafin, it said, was not consulted on the rotational arrangement and does not recognise any process that diminishes the historical preeminence of the Alaafin stool. The palace’s stance is rooted not in politics but in ancestral continuity.
Long before colonial boundaries or state councils, the Alaafin symbolised the apex of Yoruba political and spiritual authority.
For many traditionalists, the concern is not about personality but precedent.
They fear that reducing the chairmanship to a rotating office risks flattening centuries of hierarchical meaning into administrative convenience.
The Alaafin’s position reflects a deeper anxiety: that modern governance, in trying to accommodate everyone, may inadvertently erase what made traditional institutions powerful in the first place — clear lines of reverence and authority.
Olubadan as new Chairman
The Olubadan of Ibadaland occupies a unique place in this unfolding narrative.
Ladoja, a former governor- turned monarch, understands both the language of power and the grammar of tradition.
As Olubadan of Ibadanland, his stool is one of dignity, seniority, and stability. His emergence as the council’s first chairman was presented as orderly and lawful — the outcome of a revived institution rather than a personal ambition.
Oba Ladoja accepts the offer
In his remarks, Oba Ladoja adopted a conciliatory tone, urging his fellow monarchs to look beyond titles and focus on the council’s mission: peace, development, and cultural preservation.
He neither challenged the Alaafin’s historical stature nor dismissed the governor’s policy direction.
To his supporters, he represents a bridge — a ruler capable of navigating both palace etiquette and government protocol.
Olugbon of Orile-Igbon sues for peace, unity
Amid rising tension, Oba Francis Alao, the Olugbon of Orile-Igbon and deputy chairman of the council, has emerged as a calming presence.
Hosting Governor Makinde at his palace, the Olugbon emphasised cooperation over confrontation. His message was clear: the council must not become a battleground for supremacy but a forum for service.
He publicly pledged the support of traditional rulers for the council’s leadership, stressing unity across zones and respect for constituted authority.
The Olugbon’s position reflects a pragmatic strand of Yoruba kingship — one that values dialogue, adaptability, and collective progress.
In times of transition, such voices often prevent institutions from hardening into camps.
To many observers, the controversy is about more than chairmanship. It is about how traditional authority survives in a constitutional democracy.
As the council begins its work, all eyes remain on what happens next. Will dialogue bridge the gap between the Alaafin’s palace and the state government?
Can the rotational model mature into a trusted tradition of its own? Or will history insist on a return to older arrangements?
In Yoruba culture, wisdom lies not in winning arguments but in preserving harmony.
For now, the crowns remain steady, the council sits, and the story of Oyo — as always — continues to be written between the past and the present. The clock is ticking; time will tell.
VANGUARD.
