The process to select the next Awujale of Ijebuland suffered another setback on Wednesday as the Ogun State High Court returned a suit seeking to compel the resumption of the stalled exercise for reassignment.
The vacation judge, Justice A.A. Omoniyi of Court 3, said he would be proceeding on annual vacation within a week and would not resume until January 2027. Citing time constraints, he ordered the case file be returned to the administrative judge for reassignment.
The matter was adjourned to September 23 for further hearing.
The suit, HCJ/149/2026, was filed on August 21, 2026 by the Fusengbuwa Ruling House against Governor Dapo Abiodun, the state Attorney-General, the nine Awujale kingmakers, and other government officials.
The claimants are asking the court to determine if the state government had the power to halt the selection process and to allegedly lock the Awujale Palace on January 20, 2026 to prevent kingmakers from meeting.
They also want the court to declare that the government cannot suspend the nomination “under any guise” under the Ogun State Obas and Chiefs Law 2021.
“Ijebu-Ode Cannot Remain Kingless”
Counsel to the ruling house, Otunba Olusegun Otayemi, told the court all 15 defendants had been served and that the claimants were ready to proceed.
He said the action was to challenge what they called “government interference” in the selection.
“This matter is something that has some urgency in it. Ijebu-Ode cannot remain kingless for so long. And that’s one of the reasons why we are in court,” Otayemi told journalists.
Chairman of the ruling house, Otunba Abdulateef Owoyemi, said they waited seven months for the process to resume.
“We had only 14 days by the law to do what we have done. And we did it within 10 days,” he said. “We can’t wait forever! And we have to approach the court for intervention.”
Owoyemi alleged the government cited petitions and security reports to halt the process but never provided copies to the ruling house. He said religious and community leaders had also failed to secure the governor’s intervention.
SAN Otunba Kunle Kalejaiye, appearing for the 7th to 15th defendants including the kingmakers, said the defendants were still within the legal period to respond.
State counsel W.A. Onawole, representing the governor and other officials, said they would also file their processes within the stipulated time.
The nine kingmakers, led by Olorogun (Dr.) Sunny Kuku, Ogbeni Oja of Ijebuland, were present in court.
The Daily Crucible reports that the Awujale stool became vacant in July 2025 following the death of Oba Sikiru Adetona at 91, after 65 years on the throne.
The Ogun State Government first suspended the process in December 2025 over procedural concerns, and again in January 2026 citing petitions from security agencies.
Before the halt, the Fusengbuwa Ruling House said it had screened 95 aspirants — 94 princes and one princess — within 10 days of its 14-day statutory window.
