Oyo kingmakers divided over selection of new Alaafin

The kingmakers in Oyo, otherwise known as the Oyomesi, have split into factions over the selection of the new Alaafin.

There are five living members of the seven-man Oyomesi and they are: Yusuf Ayoola (Bashorun), Lamidi Oyewale (Samu),  Asimiyu Atanda (Agbaakin), Hamzat Yusuf (Akinniku), and Wakeel Oyedepo (Lagunna).

The two remaining positions of the Ashipa and Alapini are vacant following the death of the previous chiefs. But two warrant officers Gbadebo Mufutau (Alapo) and Wahab Oyetunji (Aare Ago) have been appointed for the sole purpose of selecting the new king.

Yusuf Ayoola, the Bashorun, had said the group unanimously selected Lukuman Adelodun Gbadegesin as the Alaafin-elect and consequently forwarded his name to Seyi Makinde, governor of the state, for approval.

But, on Monday, a faction of the Oyomesi that includes Lamidi Oyewale (Samu) and Asimiyu Atanda (Agbaakin) said the selection process did not follow due process.

The faction said the process that nominated Gbadegesin as the Alaafin-elect was fraught with irregularities, adding that Ayoola (Bashorun) unilaterally co-opted the warrant officers into the council without the consent of others.

Responding to the allegation, Ayoola said the duo of Oyewale (Samu) and Atanda (Agbaakin) should desist from allowing themselves to be used for political interests aimed at interfering with the traditional process. 

He said political agents want to undermine the Oyo traditional system by enthroning a “weak” Alaafin that would be at their beck and call. 

“The 7 of us met on the 30th of September, 2022, and decided to vote on who should be the Alaafin among the 82 princes whose applications were before us. All 7 of us unanimously picked Prince Lukuman Adelodun Gbadegesin as the Alaafin-elect,” he said.

“And as it is customary, we wrote a letter conveying our choice of Prince Lukuman Gbadegesin as the Alaafin to the governor of Oyo state. This is in line with the chief laws. Section 20 (2) of the law gives the governor 21 days to approve, within which either an unsuccessful prince or a ruling house can write a petition to the governor, stating that such a selection shouldn’t be approved.

“We need to ask the duo of Samu and Agbaakin that at what point did the choice of Aare Ago and Alapo become illegal in the selection of a new Alaafin? Was it after the court had given judgment, before or during the case? We are, therefore, appealing to our two colleagues not to bring falsehood into justifying their new attempt to go against what we all approved.

“We want to call the attention of the generality of the Oyos that the position of the Samu and Agbaakin in antagonizing the selection process is not known to anybody in Oyo, at least for the past 10 months.”