The Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Saliu Akanmu Adetunji, Aje Ogungunniso I, has said the chieftaincy reform in which the Oyo State government enthroned 21 kings is reversible.
Governor Abiola Ajimobi, at last Friday’s Eid-el-Mawlud celebration at the Remembrance Arcade at Agodi in Ibadan, the capital, reportedly said there was no going back on the reform.
A statement Sunday by the monarch’s Director of Media and Public Affairs, Adeola Oloko, quoted Oba Adetunji as saying “There is nothing irreversible under the sun”.
Receiving hundreds of baales (family compound leaders) from Idi Arere, Popoyemoja, Isale Osi, Igbonna, Akuro, Gbodu, Bode and adjoining areas at the weekend, Oba Adetunji noted that he has lived long enough to know that God can reverse the irreversible and return Ibadan chieftaincy system to the path of peace and harmony.
The frontline monarch noted that the legal tussle over the controversial law between the state and diverse stakeholders in Ibadan is alive.
According to him, all parties to the dispute should respect the rule of law by giving the court the chance to play its constitutional role of adjudicating in disputes without let or hindrance.
“Some people erroneously believe that the chieftaincy crisis is a personal conflict between Governor Ajimobi and Oba Adetunji. This is wrong. There are at least five suits in respect of the chieftaincy crisis in the Oyo State High Court as we speak. What this shows is that the generality of our people believe that the issue at stake is a matter of great public interest as well as the outcome.”
“As the Olubadan, I am merely a custodian of the tradition and customs of Ibadan people. With an oath before our forebears, I do not see how as a monarch I will compromise the tradition and custom of Ibadan people.”