Obasanjo visits Alaafin amid tensions with Ooni
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Friday paid a courtesy visit to the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, at his palace in Oyo Town.
The visit marked Obasanjo’s first since the ascension of Oba Owoade as the 46th Alaafin of Oyo in April 2025.
He was accompanied by his daughter, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo, alongside other eminent dignitaries.
The meeting came at a sensitive time, following Oba Owoade’s public challenge to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, over the latter’s authority to confer the chieftaincy title of Okanlomo of Yorubaland on Ibadan-born businessman, Engr. Dotun Sanusi.
The Alaafin had insisted that no single monarch holds the mandate to confer a title covering the entire Yorubaland.
Efforts to reach the Alaafin’s spokesperson, Mr. Bode Durojaye, for details of discussions during the meeting were unsuccessful as his phone line was unreachable.
Though the purpose of the visit was not officially disclosed, speculations suggest that Obasanjo may have sought to mediate and foster unity between the two foremost Yoruba traditional rulers.
