OYO TOWN – In a move that significantly redraws the traditional map of the ancient Oyo Empire, the Oyo State Government on Friday officially elevated 14 High Chiefs and Baales (community heads) to the status of crown-wearing Obas.
The coronation ceremony, held at the premises of Oliveth Heights in Oyo West Local Government, proceeded under heavy security presence. This development comes despite a last-minute push to the Supreme Court by the Aláàfin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Abimbola Owoade, and a group of Oyo princes seeking to halt what they describe as an “erosion of the throne’s supremacy.”
The Coronation Ceremony
Representing Governor Seyi Makinde, the Deputy Governor, Barr. Bayo Lawal, presented the Staffs of Office and Instruments of Office to the newly minted monarchs. The Governor, in a speech read by his deputy, emphasized that the elevation was not a political maneuver but a strategic effort to strengthen the traditional institution and bring governance closer to the grassroots.
”The State Government holds traditional rulers in high esteem as custodians of culture and partners in progress. This elevation is a recognition of your leadership and the enduring relevance of traditional institutions in community development,” the Governor stated.
List of the 14 Newly Elevated Obas
The monarchs, now authorized to wear beaded crowns, include:
- Oba David Oyediran – Alaaguo of Aguoland
- Oba Afonja Mukaila – Baba Eyaji of Oyo
- Oba Samuel Odurinde – Alajagba of Oyo
- Oba Isiaka Tella-Titiloye – Ona-Isokun of Oyo
- Oba Fakayode Alowonle – Onimileke of Imileke
- Oba Salawu Oyeniran – Onigbudugbu of Gbudugbu
- Oba Olaniyi Adegboye – Oloodu of Ojongbodu
- Oba Tijani Ajeigbe – Alapa-Ara of Apa-Ara
- Oba Oyeleke Yusuff – Onidode of Idodeland
- Oba Lamidi Jimoh – Iba Samu of Oyo Empire
- Oba Ganiyu Busari – Alago-Oja of Ago-Oja Land
- Oba Asimiyu Jimoh – Agbaaki of Oyo
- Oba Jimoh Oyeleye – Alakeitan of Akeitan
- Oba Abel Oyekan – Elepe of Iseke
A Throne Under Pressure: The Legal Firestorm
The event has been clouded by intense legal friction. Just days before the ceremony, the Aláàfin’s legal team, led by Adeola Omotunde (SAN), filed a motion at the Supreme Court (Appeal No. SC/404/2018) specifically targeting the elevation of the Baale of Ago-Oja to the status of Oloja of Ago-Oja.
The Palace argued that a 2007 High Court judgment, affirmed by the Court of Appeal in 2017, had declared the Ago-Oja stool non-existent. Furthermore, the Aláàfin has remained vocal in his rejection of the state’s new rotational chairmanship for the Council of Obas and Chiefs, which places the Aláàfin on equal footing with the Olubadan of Ibadan and the Soun of Ogbomoso.
Adding to the tension, four Oyo princes—Ladigbolu Adegboyega, Owoade Tesleem, Adeyemi Adesina, and Adeyemi Adebayo—recently filed suit HOY/18/2026, seeking to restrain the Aláàfin himself from attending functions where he might appear “subservient” to other monarchs.
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Government Stands Its Ground
Despite the warnings of “executive lawlessness” from the Aláàfin’s counsel, the state government insisted that the 2023 and 2025 amendments to the Chieftaincy Law granted the Governor the autonomy to reform traditional councils. With the presentation of the Staffs of Office, the government has effectively bypassed the judicial stay, signaling a new era for traditional leadership in Oyo.
