Ijebu ruling house rejects moneybags in Awujale succession process

The family head of Funsegbunwa Ruling House of Ijebuland, Otunba Abdulateef Owoyemi, has declared that moneybags would not be given any opportunity to compromise the selection of the new Awujale of Ijebuland.

Addressing newsmen on Saturday, at his country home in Idowa, Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun State, said eight potential candidates to the stool have offered to compromise the process.

He said, “So far, eight potential candidates to the Awujale throne have approached us with money but we have turned it down. The council of elders told them that we don’t want anything of such.

“All that matters to us is a transparent and fair selection process where only the best from our ruling house are put forward to the kingmakers for the selection as the next Awujale”.

The former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, explained that the late Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, handed down a note of warning that the selection of his successor must be transparent and should not be dictated by people with deep pockets.

“During the 2019 Ojude Oba festiva, I when it was being said that some people have budgeted N1bn to spend so that they can become the next Awujale, Oba Adetona, warned that his succession must not be allowed to be hijacked by moneybags.

“Oba Adetona said that though he never knew when his time would be up but whenever it happened, his successor must be the right candidate, the person who has the capability to further take Ijebu Ode to greater height not the person who will bring it down and that has been our guiding spirit. We won’t yield the ground for whoever thinks he has the money to throw around,” the ex-ICAN boss stated.

When asked to explain the claim by Prince Adedokun Ajidagba, that he is the authentic head of the ruling house, Owoyemi, dismissed the claim, saying that the Ibadan Court of Appeal judgement of 2024 ruled in his favour as the Olori Ebi, appointed since 2013, after the death of Prince Fasasi Adeyemi.

He, however, extended hands of fellowship to all aggrieved members of the family, urging them to sheathe their swords and join forces with the leadership of the family to produce the best ever Awujale in the history of Ijebu and Yoruba land as a whole.

Owoyemi said, “We have always been talking to everyone to be one accord, we are even ready to make concessions as long as it is not injurious or unreasonable for the sake of peace because we are all from same mother, so why should there be strife and unnecessary wranglings?”

Owoyemi explained that after his appointment as the Olori Ebi of Fusengbuwa in March 2013, some splinter group had also appointed the late billionaire banker and founder of First City Monument Bank, Otunba Subomi Balogun as the head of the same family.

He stated that he had challenged this anomaly at an High Court sitting at Ijebu Ode and that while giving his judgement in 2018 Justice Asenuga resolved two of the issues brought before the court in his favour, but failed to declare him as the Olori Ebi of Fusengbuwa.

Owoyemi explained that in pursuit of justice, “I approached the Court of Appeal sitting at Ibadan and on November 28, 2024, in a judgement delivered by Justice Binta Fatima Zubairu resolved all the seven issues brought before the court in my favour.”

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