The Olubadan of Ibadan land, Oba Saliu Adetunji, has said his opposition to the attempt by the government to review the Olubadan chieftaincy laws remain unchanged.
The monarch said the recommendation of 32 crowns for Ibadan by the Boade Commission set up by Oyo State was a joke too far.
Reacting to an interview granted the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Mr. Bimbo Kolade, on a Splash FM programme, Oro Sunnukun, the ruler, who spoke through his Director of Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Adeola Oloko, insisted his opposition to the chieftaincy review remained same.
According to him, the erroneous impression in that interview was that Kabiyesi had, at one time, opposed the chieftaincy review before he changed his mind to support it.
Oba Adetunji said: “For the avoidance of doubt, there was never a time the Olubadan supported the review embarked upon by the Oyo State government. This was why the first-class monarch did not submit any memorandum nor make any representation to the panel. When, last week, the panel submitted its report to the governor, the public would vividly remember that the Olubadan was not in the picture, because he was not invited.
“The young and old in Ibadan know that the Ibadan chieftaincy system is not a creation of the government. It is a creation of Ibadan people. No king, no governor, no elite, no high chief has the right to tamper with the system without recourse to our people.
“How many town hall meetings has the state government convened before arriving at the conclusion that Ibadan deserves 32 crowns? To show ignorance of our tradition, the panel lumped up our highly respected high chiefs with baales, who are always nominated by the family mogaji.
“Secondly, if the traditional institution wants a review, it is not the duty of government to spearhead the review. It is the duty of the Olubadan-in-council to sit down and look at what they want to review and register same to the state government for approval.
“In Ile-Ife, which the commissioner mentioned in the interview, this is the tradition. The Osun State government did not spearhead the review. In Lagos and Ogun states, the case is similar.
“Besides, there are two cases in court on this same issue, which the Oyo State government is not unaware of.
“Thirdly, you do not have to be a member of the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs to know the creation of royalties and crowns is a matter for discussion and deliberation. So, the question is: how long ago has the council met? Therefore, it is an exercise in futility to embark on the creation of new crowns and royalties without first resolving these issues.
“Besides, how many emirs are in Kano city, if you are talking of size and population? How many Sultans are in Sokoto? And how many queens are in England? Kabiyesi will not be able to attend the meeting called by the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters to discuss the issue slated for August 23 (today) because of a subsisting court order as Olubadan is a law-abiding citizen of Nigeria.”
The post Olubadan: I still oppose chieftaincy law appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.
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