Moses Olafare, spokesperson for Adeyeye Ogunwusi, the Ooni of Ife, has said the monarch will not respond to the 48-hour ultimatum issued by Abimbola Owoade, the Alaafin of Oyo.
The Alaafin had demanded that Ogunwusi reverse the title of Okanlomo of Yorubaland, which was conferred on businessman Dotun Sanusi.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, August 19, Olafare said the Ooni had instructed him not to issue a statement in response, describing the Alaafin’s ultimatum as an “empty threat.”
“We cannot dignify the undignifyable with an official response. We leave the matter to be handled in the public court of opinion as it is already being treated,” the post reads. “Let’s rather focus on narratives that unite us rather than the ones capable of dividing us. 48 Hours My Foot!”
The Alaafin had challenged the Ooni’s authority to confer the title on Sanusi. In a statement issued on Monday by Bode Durojaiye, the Alaafin’s director of media and publicity, he described the Ooni’s action as a direct challenge to his exclusive right to confer titles across Yorubaland.
“The conferment of chieftaincy title, which bothers on Yorubaland by the Ooni of Ife, is not only an affront to the revered institution of the Alaafin, who is the Titan of Yorubaland and who holds the exclusive right to confer any chieftaincy title which covers the entire Yorubaland, on anyone,” the statement reads.
The Alaafin demanded the revocation of Sanusi’s title within 48 hours and warned that there would be consequences if his directive was not followed.
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