The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has dismissed as “empty” the 48-hour ultimatum issued by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, demanding the withdrawal of a chieftaincy title recently conferred on Ibadan-based businessman, Dotun Sanusi.

In a statement posted on Facebook on Tuesday, the Ooni’s spokesperson, Moses Olafare, said the monarch had directed him not to issue any official response to the threat, describing it as “undignifyable.”

“My principal has directed me against issuing a press release on the 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,” Olafare wrote.

He added that the palace would rather focus on narratives that unite than on issues capable of creating divisions.

The Alaafin had earlier, in a statement signed by his media aide, Bode Durojaiye, described the Ooni’s action as an “affront” and a direct challenge to his authority. 

He argued that only the Alaafin reserves the exclusive right to confer titles with a Yoruba-wide scope, citing a Supreme Court ruling to back his claim.

“The conferment of a Yoruba-wide chieftaincy title by the Ooni is not only ultra vires but an insult to the Titan of Yorubaland. The Supreme Court itself has ruled that only the Alaafin has such authority. Yet, the Ooni continues to act above the law, trampling on both tradition and the courts,” the statement read.

The Alaafin warned that if the Ooni failed to revoke the Okanlomo of Yorubaland title within 48 hours, “consequences will follow.”

This latest row echoes a similar controversy in 1991 when the late Alaafin, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, protested against the late Ooni, Oba Okunade Sijuade, for bestowing the title of Akinrogun of Yorubaland on Chief Tom Ikimi, which the Alaafin described as an abuse of tradition.