Olubadan tussle: Seriki Chiefs threatens Adetunji with contempt charge if…

By; Bayo Akamo, Ibadan.
Head of Seriki line in Ibadan, Chief Adebayo Oyediji and six other Chiefs in the line have applied to the Senior Registrar of the Oyo State High Court for Form 48 against the planned installation of High Chief Saliu Adetunji as the new Olubadan of Ibadan this Friday, March 4.
The High Court Form 48, it was gathered will justify High Chief Adetunji for contempt of Court and liability to be committed to Prison if he is eventually installed as the next Olubadan of Ibadan come this Friday.
Already, it was learnt that Chief Oyediji had through his counsel, Barrister Abideen Adeniran notified Oyo State High Court of the consequences of the action should High Chief Adetunji be installed this Friday pending the suit fixed for March 8, 2016 before Justice Mukthar Abimbola of the Oyo State High Court 1, Ring Road, Ibadan.
In the pending suit, the Head of Seriki line is praying the Court to compel High Chief Adetunji and the Olubadan-in-Council‎ to obey the 2008 injunction restraining them from elevating any High Chiefs to the position of the Olubadan of Ibadan.
Chief Oyediji in the suit is alleging that ‎the Olubadan-in-Council had been cheating him and the Seriki Line since November 21, 2008 by disobeying the order of Justice M.O. Ishola which had granted an interlocutory injunction restraining the state governor, the Attorney General, the late Oba Odugade and six other High Chiefs from the Ekerin Olubadan, Ashipa Olubadan, Osi Olubadan, Otun Olubadan, as well as its equivalent in the Balogun Line “from selecting, appointing or promoting any of them to the stool of Olubadan pending the hearing and final determination of the originating summons”.
Speaking with journalists at his Monatan office, Chief Oyediji declared that the Court order was sequel to the Memorandum of Understanding reached between the Seriki Line and the Otun with Balogun Lines which allowed Seriki Chief to move into the Olubadan Line if there were two consecutive vacancies in both lines.
According to him, the consecutive demise between October and December last year of High Chiefs Sule Omiyale (Balogun Olubadan) and Omowale Kuye (Otun Olubadan), clearly showed that the agreement reached had since been jettisoned while the Olubadan-in-Council continued to ‎elevate themselves in disobedience of the court injunction.
“When I signed on behalf of the ‎Seriki Line for the ascendancy arrangement, the only Chief among us then was still alive till the recent court matter was Oba Odulana. Now that he has joined his ancestors, I remain the only living Chief to be installed the Olubadan of Ibadanland,” he said.
Chief Oyedji added “we filed this Form 48, dated 23rd February, 2016 in the suit marked: I/421/07 against Chief Saliu Adetunji, having been pushed to the wall by the Olubadan-in-Council who has continued to prove themselves to be above the law. All the elevations they had made since the injunction including that of Chief Adetunji who has presented himself to the purported kingmakers of the Olubadan of Ibadan chieftaincy and the Governor of Oyo state, for appointment as the Olubadan of Ibadan, which said appointment has been fixed for 4th of March, 2016, are illegal.
“I hereby respectively apply that you do cause Form 48 to be issued and served on the said contemnor whose name and address are stated here under as Adetunji’s House, Popoyemoja, Ibadan”.