The Ogun State High Court sitting in Ijebu-Ode has cautioned parties involved in the dispute over the succession to the Awujale stool against taking actions capable of undermining the court process or altering the existing status quo.
Justice Omoniyi gave the warning while presiding over a suit filed by the Fusengbuwa ruling house concerning the succession process for the vacant stool of the Awujale and Paramount Ruler of Ijebuland.
Counsel to the Fusengbuwa ruling house, Otunba Olusegun Otayemi, had asked the court to make an order preserving the status quo pending determination of the case.
Responding, Justice Omoniyi said there was no basis at that stage for the court to assume that either party would take steps capable of changing the situation.
The judge, however, warned that any party acting contrary to the court’s directives could be stopped and required to return to the position it occupied before such action.
Counsel to the kingmakers, Kunle Kalejaiye, SAN, also cautioned the parties against conduct that could amount to disobedience of an injunction.
Kalejaiye referred to the principle established in Ojukwu v. Governor of Lagos State, stressing that parties to a suit were expected to respect the court process.
The dispute followed the death of the late Awujale and Paramount Ruler of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, who died in July 2025 at the age of 91 after a 65-year reign.
The Fusengbuwa ruling house subsequently approached the Ogun State High Court, challenging the stoppage of the succession process after completing its internal nomination exercise.
The ruling house maintains that it fulfilled its statutory responsibilities by convening its meeting and completing the nomination process within the period prescribed by law.
The exercise reportedly produced 95 aspirants, comprising 94 princes and one princess, before the process was halted by the Ogun State Government.
The state government had suspended the process in December 2025 over alleged procedural concerns and halted further proceedings in January 2026, citing petitions from security agencies and other stakeholders.
In the suit filed on August 21, 2026, the ruling house is asking the court to determine whether the state government has the legal authority to halt or interfere with the selection process.
It is also seeking clarification on whether the Ogun State Obas and Chiefs Law 2021 permits the government to stop the nomination and selection process.
The ruling house further wants the court to compel the completion of the process for selecting the next Awujale.
Justice Omoniyi, who is due to proceed on annual vacation, returned the case file to the administrative judge for reassignment.
The matter was adjourned until September 23, 2026, for mention.
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