OYO GLOBAL FORUM OPPOSES MOVE TO STRIP ALAAFIN OF PERMANENT COUNCIL CHAIRMANSHIP
The Oyo Global Forum (OGF) has strongly condemned a proposed amendment bill in the Oyo State House of Assembly that seeks to replace the Alaafin of Oyo’s sole chairmanship of the Council of Obas with a shared leadership structure alongside the Olubadan of Ibadan and the Soun of Ogbomoso.
In a statement issued Thursday, OGF Chairman Taiwo Adebayo said the Council of and Chiefs (Further Amendment) Bill, 2025 undermines centuries of Yoruba tradition and diminishes the cultural centrality of the Alaafin’s stool. He accused state legislators of attempting to erase a pivotal element of Yoruba identity through legislative fiat.
Adebayo referenced a recent historical precedent where Alaafin’s chiefs were elevated to Part II Obas while the throne was vacant, calling it an act that reduced the authority of the Alaafin over his traditional subjects.
The forum also warned that passing the bill could lead to a broader destabilisation of Yoruba traditional hierarchies. “To legislate a concurrent chairmanship… disregards the cultural, historical, and spiritual significance of the Alaafin’s place in our collective identity,” Adebayo said.
The group urged lawmakers to reconsider the bill and stakeholders across Yorubaland to defend their ancestral legacies. “This is more than a legislative matter; it is a defining moment for our cultural identity. The Alaafin must remain the sole Permanent Chairman… That must not change,” the statement concluded.
