Fresh controversy has enveloped the succession process to the Awujale of Ijebuland, following allegations of political interference and attempts to sidestep established Ijebu customs and lineage.
Sources familiar with developments in Ijebu-Ode allege that a move is underway to install a candidate whose claim to the revered throne does not align with long-standing customary laws governing succession.
The development, if confirmed, has raised concerns among traditional stakeholders and Ijebu indigenes who fear a politicisation of a process historically guided by ancestry, custom, and consensus.
At the centre of the controversy is the reported consideration of Hon. Ademorin Aliu Kuye, a 62-year-old lawyer and serving member of the House of Representatives for Somolu Federal Constituency in Lagos State.
Critics argue that apart from representing a constituency outside Ijebuland, his alleged royal claim is traced through a maternal line from Odogbolu, an arrangement said to be inconsistent with Ijebu customary law, which prioritises male lineage and established order of ruling houses.
Traditionally, succession to the Awujale stool rotates among recognised ruling houses, with clear lines of inheritance. According to multiple community sources, the Fusengbuwa Ruling House; next in line by custom, currently has eligible male candidates from its primary line.
Observers therefore question why that line would be bypassed in favour of what they described as a secondary lineage, asserting that it’s not just a matter of personal qualification or political experience.
However, a senior Ijebu traditional figure, who requested anonymity sai it is about respecting the customs that have held Ijebuland together for centuries. Once those customs are bent for convenience, the institution itself is weakened.
While supporters of Hon. Kuye point to his legal background and public service record, critics insist that such credentials cannot override tradition. They also allege that powerful political interests at both state and federal levels are backing his emergence, a claim that has not been officially confirmed.
The situation has placed increased scrutiny on the kingmakers of Ijebu-Ode, who are constitutionally and customarily charged with selecting a new Awujale. Community leaders and cultural advocates are urging them to conduct the process transparently and strictly in line with established tradition, warning that any perception of manipulation could provoke lasting divisions, adding that this moment will define the integrity of the institution.
“The kingmakers must act without fear or favour. History will remember whether they upheld tradition or allowed it to be compromised.”
As discussions continue behind closed doors, many in Ijebuland are calling for calm, dialogue, and strict adherence to customary law. For them, the Awujale’s crown is not merely a title but a sacred symbol of identity, continuity, and collective memory, one they believe should remain beyond the reach of partisan politics.
END
[21:21, 1/3/2026] Dayo Rufai1: Awujale Succession: Controversy Rages Over Choice of Lagos Reps Member, Demorin Kuye
A brazen state, sponsored intrigue against Ijebu history, law, & lineage.
Let it be said plainly, without varnish or apology:
what is unfolding around the Awujale throne is not accidental, not innocent, & certainly not cultural coincidence. It is a carefully engineered intrigue of the government of the day, one that threatens to desecrate centuries of Ijebu tradition under the cold excuse of political convenience.
If the whispers reaching us are true, & they come from sources too seasoned to be dismissed, then there is indeed fire on the mountain in Ijebuland.
A plot is allegedly afoot to impose on Ijebu-Ode a prince from Odogbolu, yes, Odogbolu, as the next Awujale. A man whose claim rests not on the male line, not on primogeniture, not on customary order, but on a secondary, maternal (female line) linkage that the law, tradition, & established custom of Ijebu land do not recognise as first in line. The dude is even a far distant cousin to the people that should be considered!
This is where the outrage begins.
The Fusengbuwa Ruling House, by all known customary laws, has a clear, living, competent male line, the 1st line, which is supposed to be next in succession.
Yet shockingly, that line is now being deliberately sidelined, rejected, & airbrushed out of relevance, so that a 2nd line, one that should not even be approaching the throne at this stage, can be smuggled in through the back door.
Let us call this what it is:
an aberration.
A violation.
A cultural coup.
The individual being positioned is Hon. Ademorin Aliu Kuye, 62, a long-serving federal lawmaker representing Somolu Federal Constituency, a constituency that is not Ijebu-Ode, not Ijebuland, & not even close by cultural or ancestral definition.
Yes, he is a lawyer. Yes, he is politically experienced. But no amount of political seasoning can cook illegitimacy into royalty. According to those in the know, the honourable is allegedly Asiwaju’s preferred candidate for the revered stool. So, he may have gone about to say that to the world.
From all indications, this is not a grassroots yearning. It is not a kingmakers’ organic consensus. It is not a cry from Ijebu sons & daughters.
It is, allegedly, the preference of the government of the day, both state & federal, being force-fed into a sacred process that should be immune from political contamination.
This is where the danger lies.
When government power begins to decide thrones, tradition dies quietly, & history bleeds slowly.
And so, a stern, unmistakable warning must now be issued.
To the kingmakers of Ijebu-Ode:
This moment will define you for generations.
You must ensure, without fear, favour, pressure, or inducement, that the process remains a level playing ground for all legitimately eligible sons of the Fusengbuwa Ruling House. Any attempt to railroad the process, to anoint a preferred candidate, or to manipulate custom to please power will not just be a mistake, it will be an indelible stain on Ijebu history.
How, by what law, by what logic, by what conscience, can the 1st line be rejected in favour of a 2nd line, in direct contradiction of laid-down customary laws?
Since when did political influence become superior to ancestral order?
Since when did convenience outrank culture?
This is not just about a man.
It is about precedent.
If today the 1st line can be discarded for political reasons, then tomorrow no royal house is safe, no custom is sacred, & no throne is immune from capture.
And let this final question echo like thunder across Ijebuland:
If an Odogbolu prince can be enthroned as the Awujale of Ijebuland,
will an Ijebu prince, by the same twisted logic, be crowned king in Odogbolu?
Tradition is not a plaything.
The Awujale’s crown is not a political reward.
And Ijebu history must not be rewritten in the dark.
The kingmakers must choose wisely, because history never forgets those who betray it.
