By Obinna Uballa
The palace of the Ooni of Ife has dismissed the 48-hour ultimatum issued by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, demanding the revocation of the Okanlomo of Yorubaland title recently conferred on Ibadan business mogul, Engr. Dotun Sanusi.
Ooni’s spokesperson, Moses Olafare, said on Tuesday that Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi had expressly instructed him to ignore the threat, describing it as beneath the dignity of the Ife throne.
In a Facebook post, Olafare declared: “My Principal has directed me against issuing a Press Release on the empty threat of the Alawada Babasala. We cannot dignify the ‘undignifyable’ with an official response. The matter is already before the public court of opinion. No Press Release please. 48 hours my foot!!!”
He urged the public to focus on narratives that unite Yorubaland rather than issues capable of deepening divisions.
The New Diplomat had reported that the Alaafin had on Monday, through his media aide Bode Durojaiye, blasted the Ooni’s decision to honour Sanusi with a Yoruba-wide title, calling it an “affront” and a direct challenge to his authority.
Oba Owoade insisted that only the Alaafin possesses the exclusive prerogative to confer titles covering the entirety of Yorubaland, a claim he said was supported by a Supreme Court judgment.
“The conferment of a Yoruba-wide chieftaincy title by the Ooni is not only ultra vires but an insult to the Titan of Yorubaland. The Ooni continues to act above the law, trampling on both tradition and the courts,” the statement read.
The monarch warned that unless the title was withdrawn within 48 hours, “consequences will follow.”
The clash revives a long-standing power tussle between the Oyo and Ife thrones. In 1991, the late Alaafin, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, protested against the late Ooni, Oba Okunade Sijuade, for conferring the title of Akinrogun of Yorubaland on Chief Tom Ikimi, then National Chairman of the National Republican Convention.
Oba Adeyemi had described the move as a desecration of Yoruba tradition, warning that abuses from such exalted quarters undermined the sanctity of the institution.
With both monarchs once again at loggerheads, Yoruba observers fear that an age-old rivalry has resurfaced, this time, fuelled by social media and public opinion.
