Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, on Thursday inaugurated the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs after a 15-year hiatus, with the Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, emerging as its first chairman.
The inauguration, held at the House of Chiefs, Secretariat, Ibadan, was marked by the conspicuous absence of the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade.
Makinde said the chairmanship of the council would be rotated among the Olubadan, the Alaafin and the Soun of Ogbomoso, describing the arrangement as an agreement reached during consultations with the three first-class monarchs and aimed at promoting unity and cooperation among traditional institutions in the state.
However, the Alaafin, through a statement issued by his media aide, Bode Durojaye, countered the governor’s claim, insisting that no such meeting ever took place.
The palace stated that Oba Owoade neither met with the governor nor endorsed a rotational chairmanship of the council, noting that the position of the Alaafin and the Oyo community had earlier been communicated in a memo submitted by the Oyo Council of Elders.
The development came amid rumours of a rift between the Alaafin and the Olubadan, although Oba Ladoja dismissed claims of any feud, describing recent viral videos suggesting a snub between the monarchs as a misunderstanding exaggerated on social media.