Olugbon hosts Makinde, pledges monarchs’ support for Ladoja

The Olugbon of Orile-Igbon, Oba Francis Alao, has assured Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, that members of the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs will give full support to the newly inaugurated chairman of the council, the Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Rashidi Ladoja.

According to a statement on Sunday, the monarch gave the assurance on Friday, while hosting the governor at his palace in Orile-Igbon, Surulere Local Government Area of the state.

Oba Alao, who expressed appreciation to the governor for the visit, said he and other members of the Council of Obas and Chiefs stood firmly behind Makinde’s administration.

He also promised that Oba Ladoja would enjoy the support and cooperation of traditional rulers across the five geopolitical zones of the state—Ibadan, Oyo, Ogbomoso, Oke-Ogun and Ibarapa.

The PUNCH reports that Governor Makinde last Thursday inaugurated the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs after a 15-year hiatus, with Oba Ladoja emerging as the first chairman of the reconstituted council.

The inauguration, which took place at the House of Chiefs, Parliament Building, Secretariat, Ibadan, was, however, marked by the conspicuous absence of the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade.

At the inauguration ceremony, Makinde explained that the chairmanship of the Council of Obas and Chiefs would be rotated among the Olubadan of Ibadan, the Alaafin of Oyo and the Soun of Ogbomoso.

According to the governor, the rotational arrangement was an agreement reached at a meeting with the three first-class monarchs in the state.

However, a statement issued on Thursday by the Alaafin’s media aide, Bode Durojaye, dismissed the governor’s claim, stating that no such meeting ever took place between Makinde and the Alaafin.

The statement further stressed that the Alaafin was not a party to any agreement on the rotation of the chairmanship of the council.

Speaking during Makinde’s visit to his palace, Oba Alao, who is the Deputy Chairman of the Council of Obas and Chiefs, sought to clarify the position of the council and reaffirm its unity and support for the state government.

He said, “Your Excellency, Engineer Seyi Makinde, we appreciate you for coming here. And I will like to take this opportunity to explain that the government has done what is needful on the state Council of Obas and Chiefs. We are in support of the decision.

“Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs has now been re-inaugurated. And we have a new Chairman in the person of His Excellency Oba Rashidi Ladoja, the Olubadan of Ibadan.

“I want to assure Your Excellency that we are all one in the council. We are united across the five zones – Ogbomoso, Ibadan, Oyo, Oke-Ogun and Ibarapa. People can say things but we are members of one united family.”

The Olugbon further emphasised the need for traditional institutions to align with contemporary realities, noting that historical empires had given way to new global power structures.

He said, “The world is not static but dynamic in nature. In the past centuries, there were the Roman, French and British empires which ruled the world. But looking at today’s world order, the United States, Russia and emerging China are the leading powerful nations.

“The system we are operating in Nigeria is not monarchy. I implore all traditional rulers across the state to cooperate with the government of the day.

“There is no perfection in decisions of government. We just need deeper understanding of our collective will in entrenching good governance, promoting economic development, security and peaceful co existence in our dear state. Modernity has restructured the governance system in Nigeria.”

Responding, Governor Makinde said his visit to Orile-Igbon was informed by recent developments in Oloka, adding that he had personally visited the affected community and reassured residents of the government’s commitment.

He said, “I came here over what happened in Oloka. I have visited there, and I assured them that their government will not fail them.

“The people own this government. I am also assuring the people of Surulere Local Government and everyone in Ogbomoso Zone that developmental projects will spread across all the five local governments in Ogbomoso Zone. I only ask for your cooperation.”

Traditional rulers who joined the Olugbon in receiving the governor included the Aresapa of Iresa Pupa, Oba Moses Ajiboye; the Aranyin of Iranyin, Oba Lasisi Olagbemileke; the Olujado of Ijado, Oba Hammed Adegbile; and the Iba of Abogunde, Oba Tajudeen Aminullahi.