The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has been given a 48-hour ultimatum by Oba Akeem Owoade, the Alaafin of Oyo, on Monday to rescind the Okanlomo of Yorubaland chieftaincy title he allegedly granted to Dotun Sanusi, a business magnate from Ibadan. Bode Durojaiye, Director of Media and Publicity to the Alaafin, Oyo Kingdom’s supreme ruler, made this announcement.
The statement said, “The reality of our time makes it very obligatory for the Alaafin to call the Ooni of Ife to order and demand revocation of the so-called Okanlomo of Yorubaland chieftaincy title conferred on Engineer Dotun Sanusi within 48 hours or face the consequences”
The statement argued that the only person with the authority to grant somebody a chieftaincy title that encompasses all of Yorubaland is the Alaafin.
The statement further read, “The attention of the Alaafin of Oyo and the Titan of Yorubaland, Oba Engineer Abimbola Akeem Owoade 1, has been drawn to the purported conferment of chieftaincy title of Okanlomo of Yorubaland on a business tycoon, Dotun Sanusi, by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi.
“The conferment of chieftaincy title, which bothers on Yorubaland by the Ooni of Ife, is an affront to the revered institution of the Alaafin, who is the Titan of Yorubaland and who holds the exclusive right to confer any chieftaincy title which covers the entire Yorubaland on anyone.”
According to the announcement, the Supreme Court, the nation’s highest court, had decided that the Alaafin had the exclusive right to grant chieftaincy titles that encompassed all of Yorubaland to anybody.
“The instrument of office presented to Oba Ogunwusi, during his installation, specifically limits his traditional area of authority to Oranmiyan Local Government, which has now been split into three local governments; Ife Central, Ife North and Ife South,” it added.
As of the time of this publication, the Ooni of Ife’s palace has not responded to the ultimatum.
