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By Taofik Jimoh
Yoruba Council Worldwide, acclaimed apex Yoruba indigenous organization, has stripped former Nigeria president Olusegun Obasanjo of all traditional chieftaincy titles in Yoruba land.
This was unconnected with the outburst of Obasanjo against some traditional rulers who were in attendance at the inauguration of the Iseyin Campus of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) on Friday, September 15.
The outburst which is described by many as humiliation of a traditional institution, has generated anger and varied responses from Nigerians in all sections of the society.
Yoruba Council Worldwide (Igbimo Apapo Yoruba) conveyed this in a September 18 letter titled “Declaration/Non-recognition As Balogun of Owu Kingdom and any Other Chieftaincy Titles in Yoruba Land” and addressed to the Olowu of Owu Kingdom, Oba Professor Saka Matemilola and Olusegun Obasanjo, respectively.
It reads: “The above subject matter refers.
“The Yoruba Council Worldwide being the apex Yoruba indigenous organization, having waited endlessly for your compliance to the 3 days earlier call for sober apology press conference via our widely circulated notice on 16th September, 2023, we hereby declared and seize to recognize your Chieftaincy titles conferred on you by any monarchs in Yoruba Land, including the Balogun of Owu Kingdom, consequent upon your brazen refusal to apologize, degradation and disparaging comments to the Yoruba Obas on the 15th September, 2023 at Iseyin, Oyo State: A Total Sacrilege.
“We see your disrespectful statements at the commissioning of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Iseyin campus, and had commanded kings from Oyo State to stand up and accord you respect (and subsequent defence in premium times); to the arrays of first-class Royal Fathers and other leading Obas like toddlers or a village headmaster or Army General talking profusely at his foot soldiers in a most depressing, disparaging and disrespectful manner.
“We reiterate as the leading vanguard voice for all Yoruba Indigenous people globally, we have eternal duty to preserve the aesthetic distinct Omoluabi ethos, Royal stools and ancestral customs and traditions of the Yoruba Obaship. precipitating our earlier demand for immediate apologies within three (3) days which you deliberately ignored blatantly.
“Furthermore, we shall mobilize all market women, youths and leaders of thoughts for onward sanitization and compliance to our declaration forthwith.
“We shall further commence strict legal action at a court of competent jurisdiction for defamation and scandalous libel
“We have emphatically spoken!”
The letter was signed by the President of the Council, Aare Oba Oladotun Hassan Esq, and Secretary General of the Council, Siyanbade Adekanmbi.
On Monday, September 18, Obasanjo stated that he still stood by his “stand up, sit down” order issued to some Yoruba traditional rulers in Oyo State.
Obasanjo added that he would remain firm, unapologetically and uncompromisingly maintain the position that the governor holds the highest office in the state, which informed his remarks and the ‘edide e joko’ directive.
The elder statesman, who made this known through his media aide, Kehinde Akinyemi, in a statement, noted that the position, respect, protocol, and dignity that must be given to the office of a governor by virtue of the constitution must not be denied, stressing that to do otherwise is to deride the office and the constitution.
“…. the former President has affirmed that he stood firmly, unapologetically and uncompromisingly on the position that the Governor of a State holds the highest office in the State.
“By that position, the respect, protocol and dignity that must be given to the office by virtue of the Constitution must not be denied. To do otherwise is to deride the office and the Constitution.”
Meanwhile, the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs has also reacted Olusegun Obasanjo’s outburst.
The Vice-Chairman, Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs, Olugbon of Orile-Igbon, Oba Francis Olushola Alao, in a statement he personally signed on Tuesday, September 19, described the incident as an internal affair that would be properly reviewed at the next meeting of the council.
He said the monarchs involved understood the pain caused by the incident and appreciated the well-placed reactions, adding that the council’s silence is not an act of cowardice.
The statement read in part: “I would like to emphasize that the inauguration ceremony was a huge success, while the road and campus projects represent another milestone in the development strides of Governor Seyi Makinde who has been working hard to take Oyo State to the next level of development.
“All the royal fathers involved understand the pain caused by the incident and appreciate the well-placed reactions.
“I wish to state that the incident is an internal affair, which will be properly reviewed at the next meeting of the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs.
“Let me assure all Yoruba, and other well-meaning Nigerians who have respect for the traditional institution, and who feel concerned about the incident, that our silence since Friday is not an act of cowardice. When we sit down with the governor and hold our next meeting, we will review and respond appropriately.
“Our governor respects us and traditional rulers in Oyo State also hold him in high esteem.
“This is the clear position of monarchs in Oyo State. Any other information from anywhere that is contrary to this should be disregarded,” he stated.
The monarch then sued for calm, urging Nigerians to apply decorum in line with the Omoluabi ethos, saying unity is sacrosanct.
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