‘48 HOURS MY FOOT’, OONI OF IFE’S SPOKESMAN REACTS TO ALAAFIN’S ULTIMATUM
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By: Sefiu Ajape
The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, will not respond to the 48-hour ultimatum and threat issued by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Owoade, according to a statement released by his spokesperson, Moses Olafare.
The conflict centres on a recent chieftaincy title conferred by the Ooni on an Ibadan-based businessman, Dotun Sanusi.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Olafare revealed that Oba Ogunwusi specifically instructed him to disregard the threat from the Oyo monarch.
According to him, the Ooni will not dignify what he called “undignifyable” with an official reaction, noting that the matter has been left for the “public court of opinion.”
“My Principal has directed me against issuing a press release on the empty threat. I beg to disappoint you, gentlemen of the press.
“We cannot dignify the ‘undignifyable’ with an official response. We leave the matter to be handled in the public court of opinion, as it is already being treated.
“Let’s rather focus on narratives that unite us rather than the ones capable of dividing us. No press release please (sic) 48 hours my foot!!!” he wrote.
Reports indicate that Oba Owoade had described the Ooni’s action as an “affront” and a direct challenge to his authority after issuing the 48-hour ultimatum.
The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, in a statement signed by his Director of Media and Publicity, Bode Durojaiye, insisted that the Ooni’s conferment of the Okanlomo of Yorubaland title on Engineer Dotun Sanusi was “an affront.”
He maintained that only the Alaafin has the exclusive authority to confer titles that cover the entire Yorubaland.
“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 Supreme Court itself has ruled that only the Alaafin has such authority. Yet, the Ooni continues to act above the law, trampling on both tradition and the courts.”
The Alaafin further warned that if the Ooni fails to withdraw the title within 48 hours, “consequences will follow.”
He also recalled a similar incident in 1991 when the late Alaafin, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, accused the late Ooni, Oba Okunade Sijuade, of desecrating tradition by conferring the title of Akinrogun of Yorubaland on Chief Tom Ikimi.
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