OBITUARY: Awujale of Ijebu, the monarch saved from dethronement by Buhari’s 1983 coup

When Oba Sikiru Adetona, the Awujale of Ijebu, passed away on Sunday at 91, the entire city went dark and quiet with him. No drums, no theatrical wailing, no noise. Just silent rituals to prepare the dead monarch’s return to his ancestors. 

Traditionally, the demise of an Awujale is kept a secret for either three years or three months. However, with the advent of modern technology and social media, the news of Oba Adetona’s passing spread across his domain and beyond in mere hours.

The death of the “Alayeluwa”, which loosely translates to God’s representation on earth, screeched all things to a creeking halt in Ijebu. Markets were shut, celebrations were reined in, and movements were curbed… until Awujale, the conqueror of the earth, was sent to eternal rest in a sliver of the vast domain he once ruled.

The Awujale’s death was announced just a few hours after former President Muhammadu Buhari breathed his last in London, UK. The two were longtime friends, and their deaths, although coincidental, hint at a bond so strong that even death failed to sever it.

Adetona was one of Nigeria’s longest-reigning monarchs. His reign was older than Nigeria’s independence, and he played an active part in almost every epochal point in the country’s transformation.

He was a 26-year-old undergraduate when he first wore the crown. When he took it off for the last time, he was a grandfather with multiple honorary degrees and a legacy worthy of a 300-page autobiography.

A BLUE-BLOODED CHILD 

Sikiru Olukayode Adetona was born May 10, 1934, into the Anikinlaiya family of Ijebu. The Anikinlaiya is one of the four ruling houses in Ijebu, alongside the Gbelegbuwas, Fusengbuwas and Fidipotes.

Adetona’s father was Rufai, a prince of Ogbagba Adeleke I, an Awujale who reigned from 1895 to 1905. Adetona’s mother was Wolemot Ajibabi, a relative of Oyin Onashile, the mother of Mike Adenuga, the business tycoon.

It is believed that Adetona was a direct descendant of Olu-Iwa, one of the legendary founders of the Ijebu kingdom and the first Awujale.

As a little boy, the monarch finished his primary education at Ansar-Ud-Deen Primary School in Ijebu-Ode. He had his secondary education at Olu-Iwa College and graduated in December 1956.

Shortly after, he moved to Ibadan, where he lived with Mike Adenuga’s mother, and began working at the Audit Department of the old Western Region.

At 25, he moved to the UK to study accountancy, and within a year, an unexpected turn of events at home would alter the trajectory of his life forever.

HIS FATHER PASSED THE THRONE TO HIM AT 26

Although Adetona had blue blood of royalty coursing through his veins since birth, he was relatively lower on the pecking order for the crown.

Oba Daniel Adesanya was the reigning Awujale when Adetona was born. The ruling family was the Gbelegbuwas, and the Anikinlaiya were next in line. Adetona was one of the youngest in the Anikinlaiya ruling family.

Then, in 1959, Oba Daniel Adesanya passed away, and the pieces began to shift remarkably for Adetona.

Adetona’s father was one of the two eligible candidates for the Anikinlaiya. However, the father waived the throne and put forward his son’s name.

“To everybody’s surprise, however, and without my being consulted at all on the matter, it was my name that my father put forward as the candidate from the Anikinaiya ruling house,” Adetona wrote in his autobiography published in 2010.

“He did this probably because he himself had not gone to school and felt that his lack of education would be a serious handicap, or perhaps, he was advised by his friends to put my name forward. Anyway, whatever the motive, my father said, he would not be able to cope with the present-day challenges of Obaship and was therefore stepping down in favour of his son, currently studying in London.”

Six candidates were nominated for the next Awujale, but Ilamuren, the body of kingmakers, chose Adetona.

“On January 4 1960, my nomination as the next Awujale of Ijebuland was finally announced officially on the radio and in the Gazette and set the pace for a new set of activities to commence,” Adetona wrote.

He was crowned and presented to the entire Ijebuland on July 4, 1960. He became a member of the now-defunct house of chiefs of the Western Region. He was also appointed a minister without portfolio.

Oba Adetona would go on to reign for 65 years, except for a brief period of suspension and a feared deposition by Olabisi Onabanjo, former governor of Ogun.

NARROWLY SAVED FROM DETHRONEMENT BY BUHARI’S 1983 COUP

Ogun state was created in March 1976. Ijebu was part of the cities extracted from the old Western Region to create the new state.

In 1979, Bisi Onabanjo, an Ijebu indigene, became the first democratically elected governor of the young state. Constitutionally, traditional monarchs are subjects of the political authority of the governor of their state.

While the relationship between Onabanjo and Oba Adetona began cordially, it quickly turned sour.

In 1981, Oba Adetona wrote a letter to the governor informing him of his potential visit to the UK for a medical vacation. The governor demanded further explanation from the monarch before approving the journey. But Oba Adetona was in London before the query reached him.

The governor immediately wielded the big stick. On November 23, 1981, Oba Adetona was suspended from office as the Awujale of Ijebuland.

Onabanjo also set up a commission of enquiry to probe the affairs of the suspended Oba Adetona. The commission quickly recommended the deposition of Oba Adetona as Awujale of Ijebu.

The monarch remained suspended while the case was stalled in court for three years.

Then, on December 31, 1983, a military coup led by Buhari upended the Nigerian Second Republic. All the elected officials were removed from power, and Onabanjo was not excluded.

Oladipo Diya became the military governor of Ogun. A few months later, a high court overturned the findings of Onabanjo’s commission on Oba Adetona, and the monarch was restored to the throne.

‘MY DREAM IS IJEBU STATE’ 

Oba Adetona was one of the loudest voices behind the creation of an Ijebu state.

In an interview with Vanguard in 2014, the monarch said he would “feel fulfilled” when the state is created. He was also optimistic that Ijebu state would be established in “my lifetime”.

“Ijebu state is a viable vision and we will achieve it,” he said.

“Our demand is historical, justifiable and overdue. The demand is hinged on the need for equity, justice and speedy development for our hardworking and productive people. The agitation for the creation of Ijebu state has the blessing of other traditional rulers, chiefs and the entire Ijebu people, covering six local government areas of Ogun state.

“Our request has met all the conditions and has fulfilled all the provisions set out in Section 8 of the 1999 Constitution, and we are now ready to progress to the next stage for the actualisation of our dream.”

‘IJEBUS ARE FROM SUDAN’

In 1983, Oba Adetona claimed the Ijebus are descended from Waddai, Sudan.

The monarch maintained his stance in another interview in 2010. He insisted that every ethnic group in Nigeria descended from somewhere outside the country.

“Let me tell you, there are ways of settlements, even before Oduduwa came to Ile-Ife, Ife was already in existence. All you just have to do is go to history books, you’ll see all these things there,” Oba Adetona said.

“How can they use it against the Ijebus? Who is using it against them? What about others? Are they not from other areas before they settled here?”

Oba Adetona had three wives — Iyabo Oke, Modupe Ekundayo, and Oluwakemi Dodo-Williams. He was survived by more than seven children and numerous grandchildren.