2 Lawmakers Walk Out as Oyo Assembly Approves Rotational Headship for Council of Obas
2 min read
The Oyo State House of Assembly, on Tuesday, passed the controversial Council of Obas and Chiefs (Further Amendments) Bill, 2025, approving a rotational leadership structure for the state’s Council of Obas and Chiefs.
According to the bill, the chairmanship of the Council will now rotate among three paramount monarchs: the Alaafin of Oyo, the Olubadan of Ibadanland, and the Soun of Ogbomosoland.
The decision followed the presentation of the report by the House Committee on Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, delivered by the committee’s Vice Chairman, Hon. Bamidele Adeola, during plenary.
“The Chairmanship position should be done in rotation by the Alaafin of Oyo, the Olubadan of Ibadan land, and the Soun of Ogbomosoland,” the committee recommended.
In addition to the rotational chairmanship, the House also approved the appointment of 13 Council members, including the Otun and Osi Olubadan of Ibadan land.
However, the decision did not sit well with two lawmakers: Hon. Olorunpoto Rahman (Oyo East constituency) and Hon. Gbenga Oyekola (Atiba constituency). Both lawmakers stormed out of the chamber in protest during deliberations on the committee’s recommendations.
Speaking to reporters afterward, Hon. Rahman expressed strong dissatisfaction with the process that led to the bill’s passage.
“We should be guided by truth in making laws. Everyone knows the historical position of the Alaafin. He is a paramount ruler,” Rahman said. “We are not satisfied with how the committee handled the process—there was no public hearing, no stakeholder engagement, and no opportunity for people from Oyo to speak to the bill.”
He also warned against enacting laws based on political convenience, insisting that laws should be built on historical facts and capable of standing the test of time.
It would be recalled that stakeholders from Ibadan, Oyo, and Ogbomoso—including Mogajis, Baales, monarchs, the Central Council of Ibadan Indigenes, the Ibadan Compounds Peace Initiative, and ruling houses of the Soun in Ogbomoso—had, on Monday, voiced opposition to any move to make the Alaafin of Oyo the permanent chairman of the Council of Obas and Chiefs.
The rotational leadership arrangement appears to be a middle ground amid longstanding disputes over the chairmanship of the Council.
