Rotimi Osuntola, the Chief of Staff to the Alaafin-designate, Akeem Owoade, has declared that there is no obstacle hindering Owoade’s scheduled coronation as the 46th Alaafin of Oyo.
The Oyo State Government has fixed April 5 for the coronation of Owoade at the Olivet Baptist High School, Oyo.
This is as the state government on February 24 inaugurated a 25-man committee, headed by the state Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Mr Demola Ojo, to ensure effective coordination of the ceremony.
Owoade was officially presented with the staff of office and instrument of office by Governor Seyi Makinde on January 13, 2025.
His co-contestants for the Alaafin stool, including Lukman Gbadegesin and Ismail Owoade, have regarded the process that threw up Owoade as Alaafin as “unlawful, unconstitutional, invalid, null and void.”
Tuesday’s statement from the aide to the Alaafin-elect was a sequel to reports that the Alaafin’s coronation was in jeopardy because the whereabouts of the Apetunmodu of Ipetumodu, Oba Joseph Oloyede, had been unknown since January 2024.
The media report noted that traditional rites demanded that a new Alaafin must receive a sword of authority from the reigning Ipetumodu monarch before he could ascend the throne.
But, Osuntola, in a Tuesday statement, argued that there was no historical record to support the claim that the Ipetumodu played an indispensable role in the coronation process to jeopardize the April 5 coronation.
“The royal office wishes to assure the Yoruba people and the general public that there is no obstacle to the coronation of Oba Engr. Akeem Abimbola Owoade 1 as the 46th Alaafin of Oyo.
“The necessary rites are being conducted in strict accordance with the historical traditions of the Oyo Empire, and any assertions to the contrary are misleading and should be disregarded.
“While recent oral traditions may have introduced the Apetumodu into the coronation narrative, historical records do not support the claim that his role is indispensable to the process. The idea that his absence could ‘jeopardise’ the coronation is, therefore,
unfounded.
“It is imperative to clarify that the core aspects of the Alaafin’s installation remain intact, and the coronation will proceed as scheduled on April 5, 2025.”
Osuntola quoted records as stating that the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu is not a mandatory figure in the rites conferring legitimacy on the Alaafin.
“The History of the Yorubas (1921) provides a comprehensive account of the coronation process. Nowhere in this record is the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu mentioned as a mandatory figure in the rites conferring legitimacy upon the Alaafin.”
Rather, he argued that the most sacred element of the Alaafin’s installation is the receipt of the Sword of Oranyan, which is traditionally sent from Ile-Ife.
Osuntola said, “Reverend Johnson explicitly states that the most sacred element of the Alaafin’s installation is the receipt of the Ida Oranyan (Sword of Oranyan), which is traditionally sent from Ile-Ife.
“This sword is the singular most important symbol of the Alaafin’s divine authority, as it represents the continuation of Oranmiyan’s legacy.
“The documented coronation rites indicate that as part of the Ipebi rites, the Ida Oranyan is sent from Ile-Ife to Oyo for its part in the rites, and after this, the sword is returned to Ile-Ife. A replica is now sent back to the Alaafin to keep.
“The Yoruba tradition is rich and adaptive, but it does not deviate from its established and documented practices, as recorded by notable historians such as Reverend Samuel Johnson, Asa ati Ise Yoruba by C.L. Adeoye (Chapter 13 Eto Oye Ilu),
“Page 311 under Oro Oranmiyan section, which has to do with the Oranmiyan sword, and several other historians along with far and wide consultation with elders who witnessed the Ipebi rites of late Alaafin Oba Lamidi Adeyemi.”
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