Two Days to Coronation of Oloja Ago-Oja: Alaafin Heads to Supreme Court to Stop Oyo Government, Cautions Governor Makinde
Just two days before a planned coronation in Oyo town, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Abimbola Owoade I, has asked the Supreme Court to step in and stop what he describes as an illegal resurrection of a chieftaincy stool long declared non-existent by the courts.
In an urgent motion filed on January 30, 2026, the Alaafin is seeking an order restraining the Oyo State Government from installing Alhaji Ganiyu Busari as Oloja of Ago-Oja, a ceremony reportedly scheduled for February 13 at Olivet High School, Oyo.
At the heart of the dispute is the Baale Ago-Oja chieftaincy, a title the Oyo State High Court ruled in 2007 does not exist. That judgment was upheld by the Court of Appeal in 2017.
Despite those rulings, the state government allegedly issued fresh approval to Busari and elevated the stool from a Part III (Minor Chief) to a Part II (Recognised Chief) status through Oyo State Gazette No. 01, Vol. 50 of January 17, 2025.
The Alaafin argues that such actions amount to executive defiance of binding court judgments.
Through his counsel, Adeola Omotunde (SAN), the monarch is asking the apex court to:
1. Restrain the governor and attorney-general from creating or re-creating the Baale Ago-Oja stool
2. Stop the appointment, approval or recognition of Busari as Baale Ago-Oja
3. Prevent the planned installation or coronation
4. Set aside the 2025 gazette elevating the chieftaincy
The motion is filed under Order 2 Rule 28(1) of the Supreme Court Rules and Section 6(6)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, which empowers the court to safeguard its authority and prevent actions that may prejudice pending appeals.
The case began in 2006 when the late Alaafin, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, challenged the existence of the Baale Ago-Oja title.
In its July 31, 2007 judgment, the Oyo State High Court held that:
“The title ‘Baale of Ago-Oja’ does not exist in Atiba Local Government Area of Oyo State.”
The court nullified Busari’s earlier approval and restrained both him and the state government from recognizing or presenting him as Baale.
The Court of Appeal dismissed Busari’s appeal in 2017.
Although Busari further appealed to the Supreme Court, the Alaafin’s lawyers claim he has not filed his brief of argument since the record was transmitted in 2018.
Yet, despite the pending appeal, the government allegedly revived and elevated the stool.
“You Cannot Put Something on Nothing”
In a February 8 letter to Governor Seyi Makinde, the Alaafin’s lawyers warned that proceeding with the coronation would amount to contempt of court and portray the state as disregarding the rule of law.
“It is contrary to law, logic and common sense,” the letter stated, “for a chieftaincy declared non-existent by a court of competent jurisdiction to be resuscitated by executive action.”
“You cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stand.”
Copies of the Supreme Court motion were attached to the letter.
The appeal and the application for injunction have not yet been scheduled for hearing.
For now, the fate of the February 13 coronation and the legal status of the Baale Ago-Oja stool hangs in the balance, as Nigeria’s highest court is being asked to determine whether executive authority can breathe life into a title the judiciary has pronounced dead.
Meanwhile, when NewsRegister contacted Mr. Bode Durojaiye, the media aide and spokesperson for the 46th Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Abimbola Owoade I, he said “I am not aware sir”.
Credit to the Punch & NewsRegister