The brewing tension between the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade, and the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has escalated following the recent conferment of the title of Okanlomo of Yorubaland on prominent businessman Chief Dotun Sanusi by the Ooni.
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The Alaafin had issued a 48-hour ultimatum demanding that the Ooni revoke the title, warning of “grave consequences” should the directive be ignored.
Oba Owoade argued that the Supreme Court recognises him as the only traditional ruler with the authority to confer titles carrying the weight of “Yorubaland,” stressing that the Ooni’s jurisdiction is limited to Ife and its environs. The monarch accused civil servants of overstepping their mandate by awarding contracts or recognitions without ministerial approval, drawing parallels with his current dispute over chieftaincy powers.
In response, the Ooni’s media aide, Moses Olafare, dismissed the Alaafin’s ultimatum as “empty” and unworthy of an official response. Olafare said the matter would be left to the public court of opinion, emphasizing the need to focus on narratives that unite rather than divide the Yoruba people. “We cannot dignify the undignifiable with an official response,” he said, urging calm and unity.
The dispute has attracted widespread criticism from traditional rulers, community leaders, and Yoruba elders. The President of Ibadan Mogajis, Asimiyu Ariori, and the Coordinator of the Ibadan Compound Peace Initiative, Nurudeen Akinade, described the Alaafin’s ultimatum as “provocative and divisive,” warning that it undermines Ibadan’s dignity and calls for intervention by Yoruba leaders.
The Olukosi of Ilukosi-Ijesa, Osun State, Oba Omotooyosi Akinleye, also cautioned against actions that could weaken the authority of the Ooni, highlighting the spiritual and ancestral significance of his throne as custodian of Yoruba heritage.
The pan-Yoruba socio-political organization Afenifere backed the Ooni, with Organising Secretary Abagun Omololu tracing the historical supremacy of the Ooni’s authority over the entire Yoruba nation, noting that all lineages originate from Ile-Ife. Omololu maintained that the Alaafin’s authority is largely confined to Oyo Province and its constituent towns.
Similarly, legal practitioner Pelumi Olajengbesi defended the Ooni’s right to confer the Okanlomo title, stressing that neither Supreme Court rulings nor statutes grant exclusive pan-Yoruba jurisdiction to the Alaafin. Olajengbesi described the conferment as lawful, historical, and culturally justified, affirming Ile-Ife as the cradle of Yoruba civilization.
Prominent Yoruba elders, including the Aare Ona Kakanfo, Iba Gani Adams, have called for restraint and the intervention of cultural and political leaders to mediate the dispute. Adams stressed the need to prevent the rekindling of old divisions and ensure that the two monarchs, whom he described as “fathers to us all,” resolve differences amicably.
The Yoruba Council of Elders has also urged both monarchs to exercise restraint in line with the Omoluabi ethos and called on the governments of Oyo and Osun States to intervene to prevent further escalation. World-renowned Ifa scholar Prof. Wande Abimbola confirmed that efforts are underway to convene a high-level meeting of Yoruba traditional rulers and elders to mediate the matter.
The Foundation for Peace Professionals (PeacePro) described the chieftaincy dispute as transcending traditional rivalry, emphasizing its potential impact on Yoruba civilization and urging calm and unity across the six Yoruba-speaking states and Kwara.
As the impasse continues, stakeholders across Yorubaland stress that historical, cultural, and legal precedents affirm the Ooni of Ife’s role as the spiritual head of the Yoruba nation, while urging the Alaafin to seek guidance and avoid actions that could further divide the people.
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