Yoruba Title Dispute: Fearless Ooni of Ife Defies Alaafin’s 48-Hour Ultimatum

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, has chosen not to respond to the 48-hour ultimatum issued by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, regarding a disputed chieftaincy title.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, the Ooni’s spokesperson, Moses Olafare, stated that Oba Ogunwusi had instructed him not to issue any official statement on the matter.

Olafare added that the Ooni of ife regarded the ultimatum as unworthy of a formal response and preferred to let the public draw its own conclusions.

He stated: “My Principal has directed me against issuing a Press Release on the Empty Threat of the Alawada Babasala. I beg to disappoint you, gentlemen of the press.”

Olafare added: “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.”

He also urged that public focus should remain on issues that unite the Yoruba people rather than those that divide them.

“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!!!” Olafare wrote.

It was earlier reported that this development followed a warning issued by the Alaafin of Oyo on Monday, demanding that the Ooni of ife revoke the Okanlomo of Yorubaland chieftaincy title recently conferred on Ibadan-based business mogul, Engineer Dotun Sanusi.

The Alaafin, in a statement signed by his media aide, Bode Durojaiye, described the Ooni’s action as an affront.

He insisted that the authority to confer Yoruba-wide titles rests solely with the Alaafin of Oyo.

“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 Alaafin’s statement read.

He further cited a Supreme Court ruling, claiming it affirmed that only the Alaafin possesses such exclusive authority.

The monarch warned that if the Ooni of Ife failed to withdraw the title within 48 hours, consequences will follow.