19/08/2025
Ibadan Leaders Blast Alaafin Over Ultimatum to Ooni on Dotun Sanusi’s Title
A fresh crisis is brewing in Yorubaland as Ibadan monarchs, Mogajis, Baales, and other traditional stakeholders have openly condemned the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade, for issuing a 48-hour ultimatum to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, CFR, Ojaja II. The ultimatum, delivered through the Alaafin’s media aide, Bode Durojaiye, demanded that the Ooni revoke the chieftaincy title of Okanlomo of Yorubaland conferred on Engr. Chief Dotun Sanusi, Ibadan-born philanthropist and Bada Olubadan designate.
The Alaafin argued that only the throne of Oyo has the prerogative to bestow titles covering the entire Yoruba nation, insisting that the Ooni overstepped his bounds.
But Ibadan leaders have dismissed the move as provocative and an attack on Ibadan’s pride. The President of Ibadan Mogajis, Mogaji Asimiyu Ariori, and the Coordinator of the Ibadan Compound Peace Initiative (ICPI), Mogaji Nurudeen Akinade, jointly described the ultimatum as “irrational” and “divisive.”
“An attack on the Bada Olubadan designate is an attack on Ibadanland,” they declared. “Yoruba leaders must call the Alaafin to order before his irrational behavior causes avoidable division.”
The stakeholders recalled that the Okanlomo of Yorubaland title was conferred on Sanusi by the Ooni in 2020 at Ilaji Resorts during the unveiling of a social media platform, 2GEDA. According to them, the announcement was spontaneous and even the late Alaafin, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III, raised no objection.
They further emphasized that Sanusi enjoyed a cordial relationship with the late Alaafin, citing instances such as their meetings at social events, including the 70th birthday celebration of Chief Lekan Alabi at the University of Ibadan. Before his death, Oba Adeyemi had reportedly planned to personally commend Sanusi for his philanthropic works.
