For the second time in about two years, there is a raging controversy in Ogun State among religious leaders over a move by the State House of Assembly to regulate the installation and burial of Obas (kings) in the state.
This report looks at the bill and positions of the stakeholders.
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A traditional ruler in Ogun State, the Alaye-Aba of Aba, Aiyepe, Oba Rauf Adebayo Raji-Suleimon, joined his ancestors on January 22.
And shortly after the monarch breathed his last, members of the Osugbo cult got hold of his remains, took it into custody, preparatory to their traditional rites.
But Oba Raji-Suleimon’s children felt their father practised and died a Muslim, hence his remains should be buried in line with Islamic rites.
They viewed the Osugbo Society’s act as “unconstitutional, illegal, vexatious, barbaric, obnoxious, immoral and repugnant to the dictates of civil order,” and three of them headed to court by filing a matter for enforcement of fundamental rights.
The suit filed before a Federal High Court sitting in Abeokuta and marked, FHC/Ab/FHR/20/21 was filed (for and on behalf of children and family of the monarch respectively by Mrs Aderonke Egunjimi, Mrs Tiwalade Abass and Mrs Adeyemi Joseph.
Joined in the suit are fifteen members of the Osugbo society of Ijebuland and the Ijebu Traditional Council as the 16th respondents.
They sought an order of mandatory injunction compelling the respondents to return forthwith the corpse of the late monarch to the custody of the applicants at the applicants’ family home.
The applicants also sought for an order directing the respondents to pay N50 billion being damages to the applicants for the infringement of the fundamental and constitutional rights of the applicants and the late monarch.
However, the suit is yet to be determined by the court, but the State House of Assembly seems to be “helping” with its current bill seeking to regulate installation and burial rites of Obas in the state.
The proposed bill
The bill was first presented at the legislature in the early months of 2020 and it scaled through second reading on March 3,2020.
Marked “State Traditional Rulers (Installation and Burial Rites) Bill 2020”, the bill sponsored by the Chairman, House Committee on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Akeem Balogun, sought to make “a law to provide for the Preservation, Protection and Exercise by Traditional Rulers of their fundamental rights to be installed and buried according to their religions or beliefs and for other related matters.”
The bill is believed to have the backing of some strong traditional rulers in the state.
But the proposed legal framework was met with stiff resistance by the traditionalists. Daily Trust on Sunday reports that the legislature had in June 2020 fixed the bill for a public hearing, but it later suspended indefinitely following the controversy.
However, more than a year after the delay, the proposed legal framework bounced back last month in the Assembly with slight modification to its title.
The bill is now titled “H.B. No. 069/ OG/ 2021- Obas, Chiefs, Council of Obas and Traditional Council law of Ogun State, 2021- A bill for a law to provide for an approved method for the selection, appointment and recognition of Obas, Chiefs and Traditional Council in Ogun State and for purposes incidental and supplementary to them.”
Daily Trust on Sunday reports that the latest bill which had scaled first and second reading at the assembly, has also generated raging controversies.
The bill seeks respect for human dignity and promotion of modernity in the installation and burial of traditional rulers.
The proposed legal framework, when finally passed into law, is expected to curb idolatry practices in the process of installing and burying traditional rulers.
There have been age-long beliefs that Obas, especially in Southwest, are subjected to some rituals during the installation processes. And when a king dies, there is unconfirmed allegation that his corpse is subjected to various rites.
Traditionalists, who are said to be central to these rites, have vehemently rejected the bill, saying its intent would erode the culture of the Yorubas.
Ifaniyi Awoyemi, a traditionalist, at the public hearing on Wednesday, told the lawmakers that whoever wanted to be a king must be ready to abide by customs and traditions that guide the stool.
“It is not right for any Oba to say he wants to be buried in his religious beliefs, it is the traditionalist that did all the expected rituals before installing him and when he dies, it is our duty to do the needful,” Awoyemi submitted.
But the question is: what exactly are the rites that the traditionalists wanted to be preserved? A number of them were silent on this poser.
“Whoever wants to know what they do during the installation of a king, should wait until he or she gets there.
“No one knows what they do in the Kaaba in Mecca until when they get there, do we ask them what they do in Rome (i.e., Vatican cities)?” Awoyemi, who is the State Secretary of Ifa worshippers, asked.
Using humans for rituals barbaric – Assembly
Speaker Olakunle Oluomo, at the public hearing, hinted on the alleged cannibalization in the traditional rites.
He submitted that such unethical practice had made it very easy for unqualified persons and strangers to lay unmerited claims to the stool, thereby creating distortions in historical records in recent times.
“Nobody is saying they should not do traditional rites for installation and burial of Obas, but we are not going to support the usage of human being for rituals, as the world has moved away from that barbaric practice, which is even against the right to life and human dignity as guaranteed by the Constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria,” Oluomo told the traditionalists.
Muslims and Christian leaders as well traditional rulers who spoke at the public hearing described it as welcome development.
The Chief Imam of Gbagura, Prof. Kamaldeen Balogun, applauded the assembly for putting up the bill and for inviting all the stakeholders concerned, saying that all inputs should be considered before passage.
In his contribution, the representative of Egba Traditional Council and Towulade of Akinale Kingdom, Oba Olufemi Ogunleye, harped on the essence of peaceful coexistence among traditional rulers and religious leaders.
On his part, a Christian leader, Apostle Awolesi Akorede, said peace would reign if stakeholders’ views are reflected and considered before the passage of the bill.
The bill to also bar monarchs from political rallies
The Speaker also hinted that part of the proposed legal framework would bar traditional rulers in the state from attending political rallies.
Oluomo said the bill goes beyond burial rites of the monarchs, which is generating hues and cries in the state.
Oluomo insisted that any politicians that need the support of a king should go to his palace to solicit for it rather than inviting them to rallies.
The Speaker, who lamented that the Yoruba traditional institution has been abused by some intruders, noted that it is “a disgrace for traditional rulers to be attending rallies with politicians.”
He added, “They have turned our kings to politicians. When they want to do a campaign, is it a must for a king to follow them? It is not proper. You’d see some kings in Ogun State following a governor to rallies and wherever the governor is going to.
“We call them kings and a king must be at his palace. When the governor or president wants to campaign, they should go and meet them at the palace.”
