Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State has reportedly moved in to quell the festering royal battle between the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, and the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona.
There have been exchange of bitter words between the two prominent Yoruba traditional rulers in Ogun state – Alake and Awujale, recently over the ranking of the Obas by the former(Alake).
Last Monday, the Alake through 22 Egba chiefs, including 15 Ogboni chiefs, insisted that the Awujale remained the least in the echelon of status among the yoruba major traditional rulers.
The Alake said his earlier listing of the Awujale as occupying the last position after the quartet of the Oni of Ife, Alaafin of Oyo, Oba of Benin and Alake of Egbaland, “was supported by documentary evidence and therefore stands by his position.”
According to the Egba Paramount ruler, the ranking of the Yoruba Traditional Rulers was carried out in 1937 by the then Ooni of Ife.
The Alake’s statement was sequel to Oba Adetona’s last Thursday claims that the Alake was a junior chief in Egba forest under Alaafin who fled to Ibadan and that Alake is also of the same status with some Ijebu Obas like the Ebumawe of Ago – Iwoye that are under his(Adetona) jurisdiction.
The Awujale made the remarks in Lagos during the launch of an Endowment Fund for a Chair at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago – Iwoye, in reply to an earlier ranking of the Yoruba obas by Alake which placed him at the tail end on the hierarchy.
Amosun, Oba Adetona and Oba Gbadebo on Wednesday met privately for about 75 minutes at the Oke – Mosan Governor’s Office, Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital.
The details of what transpired during the closed door meeting were kept away from reporters when they emerged from it about 3:45pm.
Even when prodded several times by reporters to throw light on what happened, all of them responded in general terms.
Governor Amosun said the monarchs were in his office to deliberate on how to keep Ogun state more peaceful and vaguely blamed the press for the negative reportage of the matter.
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