The Laribikusi Ruling House in Eruwa, Ibarapa East Local Government Area of Oyo State, has reiterated that it is their turn to produce the new Eleruwa of Eruwaland, not the Akalako family.
Reports indicated that on Friday, November 29, 2019, the Supreme Court deposed Oba Samuel Adegbola as the Eleruwa of Eruwaland after he had reigned for 21 years.
However, on March 6, 2025, Adegbola was reappointed, given a certificate, and presented with the staff of office by Governor Seyi Makinde as the new Eleruwa of Eruwaland.
Addressing journalists on behalf of the Laribikusi Ruling House at Dapo Aderogba Hall, Nigeria Union of Journalists, Iyaganku in Ibadan, the secretary of the ruling house, Ijaola Abolade, emphasized that the family believes the nomination process should return to them as mandated by the Supreme Court.
Ijaola vowed that the Laribikusi Ruling House would approach the court again for redress if Governor Makinde failed to comply with the ruling, insisting, “It is the turn of our family to produce the new Eleruwa of Eruwaland, not the Akalako family.”
He added, “If not for the peace-loving nature of the people of Eruwa, a crisis could have erupted due to the governor’s actions.”
In response to Makinde’s statement that anyone challenging Adegbola’s appointment in court would be wasting their resources, Ijaola reminded the governor that the court remains the last recourse for ordinary citizens.
“We are the members of the Laribikusi Ruling House, Eruwa, Ibarapa East Local Government Area, Oyo State. This ruling house is one of the two recognized by Eruwa tradition and the Eleruwa Chieftaincy Declaration of 1958.”
Ijaola further explained, “The 1958 Chieftaincy Declaration clearly outlines the rotation between the two ruling houses, Laribikusi and Akalako. This rotation is to be honored, with one family succeeding the other.”
Addressing a statement from the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Dotun Oyelade, who claimed that the Laribikusi Ruling House had failed to present candidates within the 14-day notice period provided by the government, Ijaola rejected the claim.
He called the statement “a proverbial attempt to give a dog a bad name before hanging it.”
“We stand by our position that neither the Ibarapa East Local Government nor the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters provided us with a 14-day notice for nominations as required by the Chiefs Law of the state,” he asserted.
Ijaola then challenged the Local Government Chairman, Kazeem Arogundade, to publicly display the 14-day nomination notice he claimed to have given to the Laribikusi family.
“We are here to tell the world that the only communication we received from the state government through the local government was an invitation for a meeting with the council management, not the 14-day nomination notice,” he stated.
The PUNCH
