Court bars Adeleke from appointing new Olojo of Ojo in Osun
- An Osun High Court in Ede has stopped Governor Ademola Adeleke from appointing or installing a new Olojo of Ojo.
- Five princes from a ruling house sued over the vacant stool, and Justice K. Akano granted the interim order on 29 October.
- The order holds until the court rules on the princes' pending motion; a separate chieftaincy dispute is also in court.
An Osun State High Court sitting in Ede has stopped Governor Ademola Adeleke and state officials from appointing, installing or recognising anyone as the new Olojo of Ojo, in Egbedore Local Government Area, for now.
The order was granted on 29 October 2026 by Justice K. Akano in suit number HED/18/2026, following an application by five princes from a ruling house in the town.
The plaintiffs are Princes Babatunde Hammed Adegoke, Taofeek Adekunle Adegoke, Nathaniel Olaniyi Adelakun, Abiodun Adelakun and Olukunle Oyetunji, who sued through their lawyer, A. Mikaheel, for themselves and other members of their family.
They listed Governor Adeleke, the state Attorney-General, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and the Egbedore Traditional Council as defendants. Prince Mike Abiola, for the Onimolodun Ruling House, and High Chief Falowo Jamiu Adebayo, for the kingmakers and warrant chiefs, were also named.
In his ruling, Justice Akano barred the defendants, their agents and anyone acting for them from installing, appointing, declaring, recognising or accepting any candidate as Olojo of Ojo. The order stays in place until the court decides the motion on notice filed on 11 March 2026.
Why the stool matters
Traditional stools in Yoruba communities carry authority over land, local disputes and community representation, so who sits on them is often fiercely contested. When a stool is vacant, families and kingmakers can disagree over whose turn it is, and such rows can drag on for years.
For residents of Ojo, the court order means the community will wait longer for a new monarch. It also means any ceremony or announcement of a new Olojo before the court rules would be on shaky legal ground.
The Ojo case is not the only chieftaincy fight in Osun. Four ruling houses in Ijabe, in Odo-Otin Local Government Area, have gone to court over the state government's decision to cancel the town's 2018 amended chieftaincy declaration and approve Babatunde Omotosho Tajudeen as the new Onijabe of Ijabeland.
The families are challenging the State Executive Council's decision of 23 October 2026. The government announced Tajudeen's appointment on 24 October, alongside other traditional rulers, in a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi.
What happens next
The Ojo case returns to the court for the hearing of the motion on notice. Until then, no new Olojo can be named or installed. The Ijabe suit is also before the courts.
