Following the expiration of the 48-hour ultimatum issued to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, indications emerged on Wednesday that the palace of the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade, was preparing to release the Supreme Court ruling, which, according to it, affirms the Alaafin’s exclusive right to confer chieftaincy titles covering the entire Yorubaland.
This development came on the heels of a series of meetings held by the Alaafin with palace chiefs in Oyo town on Wednesday to deliberate on the next steps.
On Monday, the Alaafin’s media aide, Mr Bode Durojaiye, had demanded that the Ooni revoke the Okanlomo of Yorubaland title conferred on businessman, Dotun Sanusi, within 48 hours.
He also cited the Supreme Court ruling in defence of the Alaafin’s position.
The Alaafin accused the Ooni of exceeding his authority and breaching the apex court’s pronouncement on who could confer titles with the “Yorubaland” designation.
He argued that the Ooni’s powers were limited to the former Oranmiyan Local Government Area, now split into Ife Central, Ife North and Ife South.
With the ultimatum expiring on Wednesday, multiple palace sources told The PUNCH that the Alaafin might unveil the Supreme Court judgment to reinforce his position as the paramount ruler of Yorubaland.
On social media, many Nigerians speculated about the “consequences” hinted at by the palace, even as some urged the Alaafin to caution his aide and withdraw the ultimatum.
Amid the uncertainty, the Atóbaáse of Yorubaland, Babajide Agunbiade, said the Alaafin retained historical and political supremacy among the Yoruba. He advised the monarch to consider legal action to reassert his authority.
In an open letter, Agunbiade stressed that while the Ooni remained revered as custodian of Yoruba spiritual heritage, the Alaafin’s role as paramount ruler was indisputable.
He traced the Alaafin’s authority to the Oyo Empire, whose influence once extended across present-day Yorubaland, Dahomey, Offa and parts of Kogi State.
Agunbiade described recent actions by the Ooni of Ife as “an attempt to undermine the authority and tradition of the Alaafin.”
Agunbiade wrote, “As the paramount ruler of the Oyo Empire, which historically spanned vast territories including present-day Yorubaland, Dahomey, Offa, and parts of Kogi State, the Alaafin’s jurisdiction and authority are rooted in tradition and law.
The issuance of Yoruba-wide titles is a prerogative reserved for the Alaafin, as the
“This position has been reinforced through various judicial pronouncements, culminating in affirmation by the Supreme Court of Nigeria. The Alaafin’s role as the paramount authority in Yoruba land is not merely a matter of tradition but is also grounded in legal precedent. This is not just a matter of personal prestige but also of preserving the cultural heritage and traditions of the Yoruba people.”
But a legal practitioner, Pelumi Olajengbesi, countered that no Supreme Court judgment or constitutional instrument granted the Alaafin exclusive pan-Yoruba authority.
He said, “With the greatest respect, the oft-cited Supreme Court decision that purportedly vested Alaafin authority now exaggerated must be properly confined to its facts. Judicial pronouncements are case-specific, and no ratio decidendi of that Court has ever declared the Alaafin the sole custodian of Yoruba legitimacy. No statute in any Yoruba-speaking state vests exclusive authority in the Alaafin to confer titles of pan-Yoruba significance, and the Court cannot by judicial fiat extend such jurisdiction.
“The law is clear, history is unambiguous, and jurisprudence is settled. The Ooni of Ife has not usurped power; he has exercised it intra vires—lawfully, historically, and culturally. He remains the ancestral father of the Yoruba nation, and his competence to confer honours symbolic of unity is beyond reproach.”
Olajengbesi urged that the Alaafin be properly advised, noting that Ile-Ife was universally recognised as the cradle of the Yoruba.
