Governor Seyi Makinde on Thursday inaugurated the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, Arusa I, as chairman of the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs in Ibadan, with the chairmanship set to rotate among three prominent traditional rulers in the state.
However, the Alaafin of Oyo’s Palace has denied claims that the monarch, Oba (Engr.) Abimbola Akeem Owoade I, held consultations with Governor Makinde or endorsed the rotational chairmanship arrangement.
In a statement issued on Thursday by the Alaafin’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr Bode Durojaiye, the Palace said it had been drawn to comments attributed to the governor, in which he reportedly claimed to have consulted the Alaafin of Oyo, the Olubadan of Ibadanland and the Soun of Ogbomoso before the inauguration.
“The attention of the Alaafin’s Palace has been drawn to a statement credited to His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde, that he consulted with the three traditional rulers in the state on the rotational chairmanship of the State Council of Obas and Chiefs,” the statement said.
The Palace categorically dismissed the claim, insisting that no such meeting or consultation took place.
“There was no time that His Imperial Majesty, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba (Engr.) Abimbola Akeem Owoade I, held any meeting with either the State Governor or any of the two traditional rulers mentioned on this issue,” it stated.
The Palace further clarified that the Alaafin did not at any time express support for a rotational chairmanship of the council.
“The Alaafin did not tell the Governor nor make any categorical statement endorsing rotational chairmanship among the three traditional rulers in the state,” it added.
According to the statement, the position of the Alaafin and the Oyo community on the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs had already been formally communicated to the governor.
“The position of the Alaafin and the entire Oyo community on the issue of the State Council of Obas and Chiefs has been clearly enunciated in a memorandum delivered to His Excellency by the Oyo Council of Elders,” the Palace said.
