Governor Ademola Adeleke Deliberately Circumventing Laid Down Procedures, Wants To Impose His Annointed Candidate Of New Owa In Ijesaland (pics)

December 26, 2024 Olumuyiwa Olayinka

Background

The transition of His Imperial Majesty, Oba Gabriel Adekunle Aromolaran II, the Owa Obokun of Ijesaland on the 11^th of September 2024 has made the throne vacant. Owa Obokun is a first-class king, and it is one of the highly rated thrones in Yorubaland.

Ilesa is strategic in Southwest of Nigeria not only because of her historical importance but also as a commercial town with the commercial discovery of large deposits of gold across the six (6) local government areas and six (6) LCDAs in Ijesaland.

Provisions of the Chieftaincy Declaration of 1966

The Chieftaincy declaration is the legal and standard document used in selecting a new Owa, which became the amended DECLARATION OF THE CUSTOMARY LAW REGULATING THE SELECTION TO THE OWA IJESALAND CHIEFTAINCY OF 1966

The Declaration has five (5) parts.

Part 1 stated that there are four ruling houses of Biladu, Bilagbayo, Bilayiarere and Bilaro-Odo. With the transition of Owa Aromolaran, Bilaro Odo is next in line to produce the new king.

Part II stated that the succession shall be through the Order of Rotation in accordance with Section 4(2)(b) of the Chiefs Law, 1957.

Part III stated that whoever should be proposed must be a member of a ruling house. Part IV stated that there are thirteen (13) king makers namely

Obaala
Ogboni Ijebu-Jesa
Ogboni Ibokun
Ogboni Ipole
Ogboni Ilesa
Oba Odo
Odole
Risawe
Saloro (Vacant)
Arapate
Lejoka
Loro
Lejofi

Part V stated that the method of nomination by each ruling house. It clearly says that “Nomination of a candidate or candidates shall be made in the family meeting of the ruling house whose turn it is to provide a candidate or candidates. The meeting shall be presided over by the family head, and the candidate (or candidates) nominated shall be presented to the kingmakers in writing by the family head”.

The implication of the processes stated above clearly identifies those that are responsible for giving effect to the provisions of the declaration.

The Illegal Intervention Of The Local Government Council

In a discussion with one of Ilesa chiefs, under anonymity, said that a staff of Ilesa West Local Government approached the kingmakers (also known as Agba Ijesa) that a letter should emanate from them to the local government, notifying that the funeral rites of the late Owa had been concluded, henceforth the process to select a new Owa shall commence. The kingmakers conceded to this request because it is a laid down procedure and a letter dated Dec. 16, 2024, was written. But as it turned out, this innocuous request was laden with a sinister motive.

This strange letter stated, inter alia “…the need to get prepare(sic) for kingmakers meeting to come up any time from Monday 23^rd December 2024.” This is sequel to another strange letter dated 20^th December 2024 and addressed to the kingmakers notifying them of the appointment of a warrant chief in the person of one Mr. Akogun Abimbola Isaac Aluko to act as a kingmaker in place of the vacant Saloro stool.

This is sequel to the approval of the warrant kingmaker vide a letter dated 19^th December 2024 and written by the Ministry of Local government and Chieftaincy Affairs to the Head of Ilesa West Local Government Administration and signed by Mrs. A.A. Ajekigbe on behalf of the Permanent Secretary.

Even though Section 17 of the Chiefs Law confers on the Commissioner in charge of chieftaincy matters the right to appoint anyone as a Warrant Chief where there was a default in performance of duties by the kingmakers, it however restricts such appointment only to a non-ruling chieftaincy house.

According to the edict, a Ruling Chieftaincy House is described as ‘a recognized chieftaincy title holder of which, according to customary law, is appointed from amongst the members of one or more ruling houses. And without any doubt, the stool of Owa Ijesaland is a ruling chieftaincy house. What it means is that the purported appointment of a warrant kingmaker by the Ministry of Chieftaincy is null, void and ultra vires and has no legal basis before the law.

Furthermore, the reality of the matter is that there is no place within the extant laws and the Chieftaincy Declaration where any role was set aside for the local government in the selection of a new Owa of Ijesaland. Consequently, any purported role being played by the local government council is illegal and therefore remains null and void and of no effect whatsoever.

Collusion Of The State government Copelling Kingmakers To Select A New Owa

Barring any last-minute changes, the government of Governor Ademola Adeleke is set to compel the kingmakers to select a new Owa Obokun of Ijesaland. This is evident in the letter written by the Ilesa West Local Government dated Dec. 24, 2024, compelling all the kingmakers to attend a selection meeting at the conference room of the Council.

In addition to this, Mr. Lateef Bakare, an Ijesa indigene who doubles as the arrowhead and the foot soldier of Prince Clement Adesuyi Haastrup, the “anointed candidate” and coincidentally, the choice of the state government, threatened one of the kingmakers that a replay of what happened at Ido –Osun, Osun state will be replicated in Ilesa. He revealed that some of the kingmakers will be arrested by police men or DSS on trumped-up charges from Lagos or Abuja and will be whisked away for few days before being released.

This illegal arrest will take many of the kingmakers out of circulation and it will pave way for the perfection of the sinister selection process and improper installation of an Owa-elect.

Currently, the kingmakers are in state of morbid fear of their lives and have absconded from their various homes in Ilesa, gone underground, hiding in various hideouts and hotels within Osun and other neighboring states.

Litigation

The Ofokutu line of the Bilado Olu-Odo royal family had approached the courts to get an injunction to restrain the Local Government Council, the state Governor, the Commissioners for Chieftaincy matter and Attorney General and Justice from selecting or installing Mr Clement Adesuyi Haastrup, a former deputy governor of the state and a successful entrepreneur, as the next Owa Obokun of Ijesaland.

However, it’s rumored that the state government had waded in and vacated the order so that the selection can proceed in accordance with their hidden agenda. The hearing of the matter comes up on January 14, 2025, but the government is hell bent in selecting her “anointed candidate” on December 27, 2024, with or without the support of the kingmakers. It is from this backdrop that the local government council, wrote an illegal letter to the kingmakers to convene for a meeting at the local government conference room on Friday December 27, 2024, for the ‘selection’ of a new king even when it is clearly in violation of the Chiefs law of Osun state and the 1966 declaration for the selection of Owa Obokun of Ijesaland.

It is imperative to let the world know that the meddlesomeness of both the state and the local governments in the selection of Owa of Ijesaland has already created palpable fear and tension in the ancient town of Ilesa. Protests are springing up in some areas of the town demanding that the Adeleke led government must not ignite fire and crisis in Ilesa. Many pressure groups are appealing to the state government to follow due process and allow the kingmakers to do their constitutional role for a new Owa to emerge.

The people of Ilesa should be left alone to mourn the transition of Oba Adekunle Aromolaran in peace, and let the process be transparent and just so that the ancient town of Ilesa will not be engulfed in a round of crisis that will disturb the peace and tranquility of the town in particular and Ijesaland in general.

As it stands now, the state government is hell bent in announcing their “anointed candidate” tomorrow (27th of December, 2024).