By Charles Pemu 
Doyin Odebowale, a former Senior Special Assistant to the late Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, has waded into the chieftaincy title controversy between two prominent Yoruba monarchs, arguing that traditional rulers’ authority is limited to their respective local government areas.
In an interview on Channels Television, Odebowale criticized the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Owoade, for demanding that the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, revoke the “Okanlomo of Yorubaland” title conferred on a businessman. Odebowale asserted that traditional rulers are legally subordinate to local government chairmen and have no constitutional authority beyond their jurisdictions.
“The Alaafin cannot act beyond his local government. By law, he is under his local government chairman,” Odebowale said, dismissing the Alaafin’s demand as a “misnomer” and “distraction.”
The dispute began after the Ooni of Ife conferred the title on Ibadan-based businessman Dotun Sanusi. In response, the Alaafin of Oyo issued a 48-hour ultimatum, claiming exclusive authority to bestow titles covering all of Yorubaland. However, the Ooni’s spokesperson, Moses Olafare, dismissed the ultimatum as an “empty threat,” stating it would not be dignified with a formal response.
Odebowale attributed such conflicts among monarchs to “permissive decadence” and a “misapprehension of roles,” arguing that many rulers are in a hurry to abandon tradition. He added that the British colonial administration had long ago “downgraded empires into stools” and that modern chieftaincy laws now limit their influence.