The most senior of the newly crowned Ibadan monarchs, Oba Lekan Balogun, the Otun Olubadan of Ibadan, has said that the issue of taking away the Olubadan-in-Council meeting from the palace to Mapo Hall is not a way of contesting the Olubadan’s position.
According to Balogun, who is a former senator, the choice of Mapo as venue of the meeting of Obas in council was a recommendation made by the review commission, adding that it will give the council privacy instead of making it a family affair.
In an interview with Saturday Punch, Balgun explained: “It was not meant to be offensive and there is no law against Olubadan telling his high chiefs to meet him in his palace. We will go and meet him there. All that we are saying is that Mapo belongs to us. It will also give the council privacy instead of making it a family affair. It is a function of recent experiences. We have had some arguments in the recent times that are well documented. Maybe that was what led to the recommendation. Ibadan has a central palace that will soon be completed. When it is completed, we will have a place of meeting there instead of going to Mapo Hall,”
“Previously, the Balogun line used to be 23 steps, but it is now 12 steps. For the Olubadan line, where I belong, it used to be 22 steps; but now, it has been reduced to 11 steps. With the new arrangement, Ibadan will soon have a king who will be around 45 to 50 years. Is that not good for Ibadan? Let us stop looking at individual interest but the interest of Ibadan as a city.”
Balogun also explained that an Oba won’t be enough when town eventually becomes Ibadan State.
He said that “there are several advantages in the new system. One of the advantages is that it places Ibadan alongside the practice in other parts of Yorubaland. If you get to Lagos, you will find several kings. You will find the same practice in Osun, Ogun and so on.”
He continued: “The practice we had in place before now placed Ibadan at a big disadvantage. When we go to traditional functions where royals and chiefs are invited, the arrangement would be that the kings, irrespective of the size of their domain, would be asked to take the front seats. They would all be wearing crowns.
“Then they would place the chiefs in lower seats. But when you look at those who sat with the Olubadan of Ibadan land, Alaafin of Oyo, Soun of Ogbomoso and so on, many of the kings would not be as important as the high chiefs of Ibadan. These are kings who preside over domains that are as small as an area in Ibadan land. In fact, some of them equate to aides of Ibadan high chiefs.
“Personality-wise, they are not superior to Ibadan high chiefs, who were not allowed to move near the kings. This new reform by the government will change this anomaly.
“With our present position and new status of the high chiefs, if the Olubadan is invited to a function, the high chiefs, who are now kings, will go with him as his lieutenants. It is in the Olubadan’s interests that he goes out and is assisted by kings on both sides. That earns him prestige and respect. Everybody will be compelled to honour him. That has taken care of two disadvantages that we have endured for so many years. That is a two-in-one advantage. If we succeed in getting ‘Ibadan State,’ does it make sense to have only one king in a state?,” he said.
He explained that the new system doesn’t change the old system.
“Fundamentally, nothing has changed from the old system. I still remain the Otun Olubadan of Ibadan land and the Olubadan remains the imperial majesty. Nothing is changing in the Ibadan traditional chieftaincy structure. The tradition of the people is usually a function of hereditary (culture). Ibadan land was founded by warriors who decided to assemble the structure that we inherited. They decided to install the system that worked perfectly. This new system is not erasing the old system.
“The sanctity of the Olubadan stool remains in the new arrangement. It is still intact. He is the paramount ruler of Ibadan land. He is above every other Oba in the city. No one is competing with the Olubadan. He is our king and his subjects remain intact as in the old arrangement.”
He also noted that contrary to speculation that the timing was wrong, the government has been paying salaries of the chiefs.
“Has the government not been paying the high chiefs and baales who are now kings? Are those people not being self-centred? Do they know as much as the government knows about its purse and spending? The governor knows the basics of government finance. Who are you and I to ask questions about where the funding will come? The governor would have thought about this and how to raise funds to pay the kings. I don’t think these people are serious.”
He added that the governor briefed all of them, including the Olubadan before the decision was taken.
“At the beginning of the process, nine high chiefs met at my house with a lawyer. We decided to go to court to challenge the idea of the governor. We decided to go to court because we were not consulted before the governor set up a commission to review the chieftaincy system. We felt he must have known that as the most affected individuals, he should have carried us along. When he heard about it, the governor called us to a meeting, which included the Olubadan also. He said he was sorry. There was an allegation that he was targeting me and Rashidi Ladoja, who is the Osi Olubadan. It was also alleged that he was identifying some people for undue promotion through the new system.
“In other words, he was proposing the reform to place some people at a disadvantage and handicap some people. But when Ajimobi explained to us what he had noticed at public functions where monarchs were invited and how he felt that the reform was necessary to place the Olubadan and the high chiefs at a higher pedestal, it tallied with the explanation I earlier made about the advantages of the system. He was thinking like a true son of Ibadan land who understands the system. We thought that he did not mean any harm to anyone. The Olubadan was present at that meeting.”
Balogun revealed that the idea was not Governor Abiola’s but recommendations.
“The report of the reform committee was not his idea at all. They were recommendations, except some minor areas that would have handicapped the system. He rejected them. For instance, the commission recommended age and education stipulations for any one that would become a Mogaji of his family, but he rejected it. Every family has a reason to present someone for the position.
“The commission also recommended an age limit for anyone that would ascend to the position of Olubadan. He also rejected it. He said the system was a natural process.”
Speaking on the place of the Mogaji in the new arrangement, Balogun said: ”Their position is still intact. They are still in the system. But instead of starting from the Jagun, they will now start from Ikolaba. There will be a time when any chieftaincy position below Ikolaba will be phased out. The first promotion level for the Mogajis will now be Ikolaba. That would have cut by 50 per cent the steps they would take before they reach the top, which is the Olubadan,” he said.
Balogun said the dust the issue has raised will soon be addressed.
“We are working hard on this issue. Ladoja is my brother and friend. I still hold him dear. We are talking to him. Once the dust settles, everybody will understand the governor better. I have a strong feeling that many people have not understood the structure. Instead of asking questions, some people have resorted to flaring up. The clearer the public becomes about this issue, the better we can use it to make peace.”
“We have not met in the past few weeks. We will remain friends and brothers. Olubadan remains my father. The fact that we were born in this town determines how we relate with each other. Very soon, I will visit him and talk to him about this issue.
When asked if the satellite towns that now have coronet wearing kings will not ask for elevation to wear bigger crowns, he said: “It is not unlikely, but it is impossible. History is clear on this matter. Anyone that does that will be checked.”
He added that there is no documented stipulated penalty for anyone that challenges the authority of the Olubadan at the moment.
“For now, there is none, but we are just beginning a new process that will be fine-tuned. If anyone disrespects the Olubadan among the new kings, he will be punished. We will not tolerate such thing.”
