The Ekiti State Government has restated its firm resolve to instil due process in all chieftaincy selection processes, warning that manipulation and imposition are recipes for anarchy, violence and bloodshed that will not be tolerated.
The Deputy Governor, Chief (Mrs) Monisade Afuye, gave the warning on Thursday in Ado-Ekiti while mediating in a chieftaincy dispute arising from a petition by the Eruobodo family of Aaye Quarters in Efon-Alaaye.
The petitioners alleged that they were unjustly sidelined in the installation of a new Obanla of the kingdom, the second-in-command to the Alaaye.
Addressing stakeholders, Afuye said the Alaaye Chieftaincy Declarations of 1957 stipulated that three ruling houses – Adaramoye, Eruobodo and Arojo – were eligible to fill the vacancy, adding that only male children were entitled to the stool.
She said the Eruobodo family remained entitled to produce the next Obanla in line with the rotation principle prescribed by the State Chiefs Law and the chieftaincy declarations.
According to her, selecting a candidate from another ruling house outside Eruobodo negates the rotational principle designed to ensure stability, peace and unity in the community.
Afuye said Gov. Biodun Oyebanji was committed to strict adherence to the Chiefs Law to sustain the relative peace being enjoyed in the state and avert unnecessary disputes that could degenerate into violence.
To resolve the impasse, she summoned the head of the Eruobodo family to appear at the next government-convened meeting to clarify whether the installed Obanla, Chief Wole Oni, is truly from the Eruobodo family as claimed.
“Gov. Oyebanji will not tolerate any manipulation of the chieftaincy process. The principle of rotation is clearly contained in the Chieftaincy Declarations of Efon-Alaaye and must be strictly followed.
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“The Eruobodo family should present its candidate to the kingmakers for installation. Government is interested in peace and will not allow anything to tamper with the relative peace in the state,” she said.
Earlier, the petitioner, Mr Moses Eruobodo, alleged that available evidence showed that the Obanla title had been rotated among the ruling houses and that his family, being next in line, had presented a candidate who was rejected by the Alaaye-in-Council.
He claimed that Chief Wole Oni was not a member of the Eruobodo family and described his installation as a breach of the 1957 chieftaincy declaration on the rotation of the title.
Eruobodo described the installation as an act of imposition and injustice that required government intervention.
In his response, the Saba of Aaye Quarters and head of kingmakers, Chief Francis Mogaji, said the choice of Chief Wole Oni followed due consideration by all kingmakers in accordance with the Chiefs Law.
Mogaji denied that the nomination of the Obanla was the sole prerogative of Aaye Quarters and accused the petitioner of attempting to manipulate the process by presenting only one candidate, which was rejected by the kingmakers.
Also speaking, the Alaaye of Efon, Oba James Aladejare, who is the prescribed authority, and the Chairman of Efon Local Government, Hon. Segun Afolabi, commended the state government for its swift intervention and pledged to explore internal mechanisms to resolve the dispute promptly.