By Charles Maduka
Popular Fuji musician and Olori Omooba of Ijebu land, Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde, popularly known as KWAM1, has written to Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, alleging that he is being deliberately excluded from the ongoing process to select the next Awujale of Ijebu land.
Ayinde accused the Fusengbuwa ruling house, which is next in line to produce the Awujale, of issuing directives that violate the Chieftaincy Declaration and the Obas and Chiefs Law of Ogun State. He claimed the actions were designed to prevent him from participating in the contest for the traditional stool.
The allegations were contained in a letter sent to the governor through his lawyer, Dr Wahab Shittu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. The letter raised concerns over the conduct of the ruling house and the procedures being adopted for the nomination of candidates.
The race for the Awujale stool has reportedly attracted over 60 contestants, with Ayinde openly declaring his interest. However, the Fusengbuwa family has maintained that the musician is not a member of the ruling house and is therefore not qualified to take part in the selection process.
Ayinde had earlier approached the Ogun State High Court in Ijebu Ode, seeking an interim injunction to restrain the governor and six others from proceeding with the selection exercise. The court dismissed the application, ruling that it lacked merit, after which the musician withdrew the suit without stating a clear reason.
In his latest letter to the governor, Ayinde explained that the Ijebu Ode Local Government, through a letter from its secretary, Oke Adebanjo, had approved the ruling house to commence the selection process. He said he was surprised when, despite preparations for a family meeting, the ruling house’s public relations officer, Prince Adeleye Lateef Ademuyiwa, issued a directive asking candidates to collect nomination forms and appear before a screening committee chaired by Prince Alhaji Mitiu Adenuga.
Ayinde further stated that the directive fixed the nomination exercise for January 12, but also indicated that the process would be conducted by delegates to be selected at a meeting scheduled for January 10, a move he described as contradictory and unlawful.
In the letter, his lawyer argued that the directives violated existing laws governing chieftaincy matters in the state and were aimed at disenfranchising eligible members of the ruling house. He stressed that all members of the Fusengbuwa ruling house were entitled to attend the nomination meeting and vote for candidates of their choice, adding that no group had the right to impose a delegate system.
The letter called on the governor to intervene promptly to ensure fairness, due process and the protection of Ayinde’s rights in the selection process.
Reacting to the letter, the Vice Chairman of the Fusengbuwa ruling house, Prof Fassy Yusuf, confirmed receiving it but dismissed its contents as baseless. He described the claims as misguided and said the ruling house would proceed with the selection as planned.
Yusuf argued that the screening process was necessary, noting that the ruling house had thousands of members and could not accommodate everyone at once. He added that the family had scheduled the nomination meeting for candidates interested in the vacant stool.
The Awujale stool became vacant following the death of Oba Sikiru Adetona, who passed away at the age of 91 after ruling the ancient kingdom for 65 years.
Efforts to get a response from the Ogun State Government were unsuccessful, as the governor’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, did not respond to enquiries at the time of filing this report.
Leave a Reply