Alaafin of Oyo has given Ooni of Ife 48 hours to revoke Dotun Sanusi’s title.
He insists only the Alaafin holds authority to confer Yoruba-wide chieftaincy honors.
Tension is rising in Yorubaland after the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, issued a 48-hour deadline to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, to withdraw the Okanlomo of Yorubaland title awarded to Ibadan businessman, Engineer Dotun Sanusi.
In a statement released on Monday through his Director of Media and Publicity, Bode Durojaiye, the Alaafin described the Ooni’s decision as an “affront” to tradition and a challenge to the authority of the Alaafin, whom he insists holds the exclusive right to confer titles with jurisdiction over all of Yorubaland.
“The conferment of a Yoruba-wide chieftaincy title by the Ooni is not only ultra vires but an insult to the Titan of Yorubaland. The Supreme Court itself has ruled that only the Alaafin has such authority. Yet, the Ooni continues to act above the law, trampling on both tradition and the courts,” the statement read.
The Alaafin further argued that the Ooni’s staff of office at the time of installation limits his authority to the Ife area covering Ife Central, Ife North, and Ife South local governments.
“He has no mandate to confer a title that covers the whole of Yorubaland. This must stop,” the statement warned.
Oba Owoade added that the integrity of the Yoruba traditional institution is now on trial, cautioning that failure to revoke the title within 48 hours would attract consequences.
Reflecting on his ongoing unity tours across Yoruba kingdoms, the Alaafin stressed that peace and development in Yorubaland can only be sustained through respect for hierarchy and adherence to tradition.
“Our forefathers sacrificed for unity, and we must preserve it. But the Ooni of Ife is mistaking the Alaafin’s peace initiative for weakness, hence these provocative actions,” he said.
