Former Senator Lekan Balogun, one of the Ibadan high chiefs recently elevated to the position of Oba by the Oyo State Government, has expressed support for the decision of Governor Abiola Ajimobi to appeal a High Court judgment concerning the review of the Ibadan traditional chieftaincy system.
Balogun, who spoke on the judgment, questioned the implications of having only one traditional ruler in the event of the creation of Ibadan State.
“If we have Ibadan State, are we going to have only one king in the state? I don’t know what the judge has against Ibadan interest; I don’t know where she is from,” he said.
He added that he was satisfied with the governor’s decision to direct his legal team to challenge the judgment at the appellate court.
“The governor gave the directive that his legal team should appeal the judgment; so, I am satisfied with that,” Balogun said.
Justice Olajumoke Aiki of the Oyo State High Court had, on Friday, January 19, 2018, delivered judgment in a suit filed by former Oyo State Governor and Osi Olubadan of Ibadanland, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, challenging the decision of Governor Ajimobi to establish the Justice Boade Chieftaincy Review Commission.
In the judgment, the court held that Sections 10, 12 and 25 of the Oyo State Chiefs Law did not empower the governor to establish the review committee.
Ladoja had challenged the process initiated by the Ajimobi administration to review the traditional chieftaincy structure in Ibadanland, a move that led to the elevation of several high chiefs to the status of Obas.
The judgment consequently became a major development in the controversy surrounding the restructuring of the Ibadan traditional institution under the Ajimobi administration.
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