‘419 Obas’, Land Grabbers: Olota, Mustapha, Babarinsa Warn Yoruba Kingship Is Losing Its Honour

When almost anyone with ambition, money and a plot of land can acquire a crown, the crown stops meaning anything.

That was the warning at the 49th edition of Boiling Point Arena on Sunday, November 8, 2026. There, the Olota of Ota, Oba (Prof.) Adeyemi Obalanlege, called on governments and traditional rulers across Yorubaland to declare a state of emergency over the proliferation of Obas.

THE KING WHO SAYS THE THRONE IS IN DANGER

ValidViewNetwork reports that the discourse examined the theme “Yoruba Obas, Cultural Desecration and the Crisis of Royal Authority: The Dividing Line Between Cultural Change and Cultural Disrespect.”

Ayo Arowojolu, a veteran journalist and public relations strategist, hosted it. It ran hybrid on Zoom and went live on seven partner radio stations nationwide.

The Olota did not speak as an outsider. He spoke as a monarch indicting his own institution. He said some people with questionable backgrounds, including alleged land grabbers, now sit on ancestral stools.

Politicians, he argued, create unnecessary stools and elevate unsuitable candidates. Some Obas, he added, now destroy the culture they exist to defend.

He proposed periodic training for monarchs, so that kingship comes with continuous orientation and not just a coronation.

HISTORY’S VERDICT: TOO MANY CROWNS

Veteran journalist and author Dare Babarinsa supplied the historical record. He traced the crisis to the blurring of old distinctions. Obas traditionally belonged to the Oduduwa lineage, while Olus and Baales led other communities.

As towns chased prestige, those lines faded.

Babarinsa recalled that the Western Region House of Chiefs once seated about 30 traditional rulers. Individual Yoruba states now have far more.

His summary was blunt: “Too much of everything is bad.”

His point is economic as much as cultural. A title multiplied is a title devalued, much as printing more money weakens a currency. He also lamented the decline of Ipebi, the seclusion in which prospective monarchs were once trained for office.

THE “419 OBAS” AND THE LAND QUESTION

Egba High Chief Bode Mustapha was the sharpest voice. He accused some title seekers of chasing land deals and not community development.

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He coined a label for them: “419 Obas.”

ValidViewNetwork gathered that Mustapha also alleged that some monarchs operate outside their domains, lack palaces in the communities they claim and award chieftaincy titles far from their territories.

He recalled a reported Abeokuta gathering where about 75 people were paraded as monarchs. Some left on commercial motorcycles while holding their crowns in place.

Consider what that means in a country where land disputes can outlast the buyers. A stamp, a staff and a chieftaincy list become assets in the wrong hands. Mustapha argued that only real legal consequences will deter such conduct.

INFLUENCE OR POWER? WHERE THE SPEAKERS PARTED

The three agreed on the disease but differed on the cure.

Mustapha urged constitutional amendment to define the roles of traditional rulers. He also wants state commissions of inquiry into how existing stools were created, using clear criteria such as population, a genuine constituency and basic infrastructure.

Babarinsa disagreed. He argued that a monarch’s strength lies in influence, not power, and that Obas who contest power with elected officials usually emerge weaker. He backed regular meetings among monarchs and a code of conduct that requires them to serve all residents irrespective of religion.

Mustapha also endorsed peer review among traditional rulers and a return to the role of Ifa in selecting candidates. In his words, let the oracle speak.

THE QUESTION THE DISCOURSE LEAVES BEHIND

Here lies the contradiction. The Olota blames politicians for creating stools, Mustapha wants government to investigate them, and Babarinsa warns that the institution cannot be saved by seeking political power.

If politics created the problem, who can safely fix it? And who regulates the regulators?

The 49th edition exposed an institution revered as custodian of Yoruba identity now questioned over the conduct of some of its occupants, the integrity of appointments and the political forces shaping its growth.

Whether the crown can still command respect depends on whether those who wear it are willing to defend it. ValidViewNetwork reports.