A former Senior Special Assistant on Special Duties to the late Ondo State Governor, Doyin Odebowale, has launched a scathing critique against the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Owoade, following the monarch’s call for the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, to revoke a newly conferred chieftaincy title bestowed upon an Ibadan-based businessman. Odebowale described the move as a misinterpretation of the roles and limitations of traditional rulers within Nigeria’s governance structure.
During an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Wednesday, Odebowale stressed that traditional rulers operate strictly within their local government jurisdictions and are not constitutionally elevated above elected government officials in those areas. According to him, attempts by any monarch to exercise authority beyond such boundaries are both misleading and unconstitutional.
“With respect to most of these rulers now, there is a misapprehension of roles. They want to be addressed as Kabiyesi, but they are not. They are under the local government chairman in their respective localities. So this idea of somebody sitting in Oyo and legislating on what happens in Ile-Ife is a misnomer,” Odebowale firmly stated, highlighting what he believes to be a growing overreach by monarchs.
He further argued that the Alaafin may have been misguided into perceiving the matter as a jurisdictional conflict with the Ooni, even though both monarchs preside over entirely different regions and councils. “I don’t see any justification for this distraction,” the ex-aide said, suggesting that the controversy had no real substance.
Odebowale went on to lament the frequent disputes among Yoruba monarchs, attributing them to what he called “permissive decadence” within the traditional system. He claimed that many rulers today are increasingly discarding their core cultural responsibilities in favor of religious or social recognition, often prioritizing modern titles over the preservation of Yoruba heritage. “It appears to me that they are in a hurry to discard tradition. They are so happy when they are addressed as Oba, assistant pastor, or Alhaji; that is total abnegation of traditional values,” he said with visible disappointment.
Offering historical perspective, Odebowale recalled how the British colonial administration had significantly reduced the power of monarchs by converting empires into stools and enacting chieftaincy laws that strictly regulate their authority. He emphasized that such laws continue to limit the influence of traditional rulers today. “By government structure, their powers do not go beyond their local government. The Ooni of Ife is in Osun state, and they have their traditional council. The Alaafin of Oyo is in Oyo state, and they have a traditional council. By the Oyo State chieftaincy law, only four Obas are recognised as imperial majesties. The Alaafin cannot act beyond his local government. By law, he is under his local government chairman,” he clarified.
The controversy stems from the recent conferment of the title “Okanlomo of Yorubaland” on prominent Ibadan businessman Dotun Sanusi during an elaborate ceremony in Ibadan last weekend. The Alaafin strongly opposed the move and subsequently issued a 48-hour ultimatum demanding that the Ooni of Ife revoke the honor, claiming that only he has the exclusive authority to oversee Yoruba-wide chieftaincy matters.
However, the ultimatum was quickly dismissed by the Ooni’s spokesperson, Moses Olafare, who described it as an “empty threat” that carried no weight in law or tradition. In response to the growing tension, the Alaafin’s media aide, Bode Durojaiye, attempted to clarify the monarch’s stance, insisting that Oba Abimbola Owoade was not attempting to assert supremacy over his fellow rulers. Instead, he argued, the Alaafin was merely acting in defense of the sanctity and continuity of Yoruba traditional practices.
The clash between the two foremost Yoruba monarchs has once again reignited debates over the roles, limits, and relevance of traditional rulers in contemporary Nigerian governance, drawing nationwide attention to the balance between cultural preservation and constitutional authority.