The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Engineer Abimbola Akeem Owoade I, has described Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State as a liar over his claim that he held a meeting with the three paramount rulers in the state, where the monarchs agreed to chairmanship rotation.
Owoade, who faulted the governor on the inauguration of the council, explicitly pointed out that Makinde never held a meeting with the state’s paramount rulers where they agreed on the rotation of the council’s chairmanship, describing as incorrect the claim that he was consulted on the decision.
Stating this on Thursday, January 15, 2025, in a statement signed by the Palace Director of Media and Publicity, Bode Durojaiye, Alaafin stated that at no time did he meet with the governor or hold discussions with the Olubadan of Ibadanland and the Soun of Ogbomoso on the matter.
Governor Makinde had, while inaugurating the reconstituted State Council of Obas and Chiefs, announced that the chairmanship of the council would rotate among the Olubadan, the Soun of Ogbomoso and the Alaafin of Oyo, with the Olubadan, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, emerging as the pioneer chairman under the arrangement.
The governor had also said the decision followed consultations with the three leading traditional rulers in the state.
However, the Alaafin insisted that he neither met with the governor nor endorsed the rotational arrangement.
The statement reads, “The attention of the Alaafin’s Palace has been drawn to a statement credited to His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde, that he consulted with the three traditional rulers in the state, the Alaafin, the Olubadan, and the Soun of Ogbomoso, on the rotational chairmanship of the State Council of Obas and Chiefs. The Palace hereby states clearly that there was no time that His Imperial Majesty, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Engineer Abimbola Akeem Owoade I, held any meeting with either the state governor or any of the two traditional rulers mentioned above.”
The statement further said that the Alaafin did not at any time convey his endorsement of a rotational chairmanship arrangement among the three monarchs, stressing, “Also, the Alaafin did not tell the governor or make a categorical statement on his endorsement of rotational chairmanship among the three traditional rulers in the state,” it added.
The Palace said the position of the Alaafin and the entire Oyo community on the issue of the State Council of Obas and Chiefs had earlier been clearly articulated in a memorandum submitted to the governor by the Oyo Council of Elders.
According to the Palace, the memorandum reflects the long-standing historical position of Oyo on the structure and leadership of the traditional council.
The development has added a fresh twist to the controversy surrounding the reconstitution of the State Council of Obas and Chiefs, which had generated intense public debate in recent weeks.
While the state government has insisted that the rotational system would promote equity, unity and harmony among traditional institutions, critics have argued that the arrangement undermines historical precedence and the traditional hierarchy in Yorubaland.
The Alaafin, regarded as one of the most influential and revered monarchs in Yorubaland, occupies a central place in Yoruba history as the head of the old Oyo Empire and a symbol of cultural and political authority
