Olubadan Accused Of Hawking Chieftaincy Titles For N30 Million

By Ayodele Oluwafemi

Some aggrieved members of the Olubadan-in-Council have accused the Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Saliu Adetunji of monetising traditional titles in the tune of N30 million each, describing it as unthinkable and unimaginable.

They argued that the authority that was  conferred on the title of Imperial Majesty on the Olubadan was the same authority that conferred on them titles of royal majesties and royal highnesses.

The chiefs who were alleviated to Obas by a former governor of the state, Abiola Ajimobi, made this known in a four-page letter, made available to journalists in Ibadan, on Sunday.

They expressed dissatisfaction, in what they described as relegation of their roles.

Part of the letter reads thus: “Ever before the immediate past administration in the state initiated the review of the Ibadan Traditional Chieftaincy Declaration in 2017, two main issues had drawn a wedge between the palace and the members of the Olubadan-in-Council.

 “The issues were the relegation of the members of the Olubadan-in-Council to mere onlookers and bystanders at the Olubadan-in-Council meetings where the Oloris and some members of your Imperial Majesty’s family were the decision makers.

“We are not aware of any of the Olubadans in the history of Ibadanland whose wives and family members were made members of Olubadan-in-Council. Our attempt to check this anomaly, through protest, was rebuffed and our personalities verbally attacked and recriminated by the Oloris in the presence of your Imperial Majesty without a word of caution.

“The other issue which drew our ire and which was a reflection of the denial of our patriotic contributions at the Olubadan-in-Council meetings was the criminal commercialisation of Ibadan traditional titles the moment Your Imperial Majesty ascended the throne of Olubadan, which was a sharp departure from what we all agreed to and practised during the reign of your predecessor.

‘’It sounds odd, unthinkable and unimaginable that people now pay as much as N30m to be installed as a traditional chief in Ibadanland. This is against one’s antecedents and family contributions to the development of Ibadanland, which are the traditional yardsticks to measure qualification for installation.

“The implication of this ‘cash and carry’ approach is the installation of some people with questionable moral background at the expense of decent and genuine people with proven track record and whose genuine and verifiable source of income could not meet the demand of the palace.”

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