Makinde has abandoned governance for politics, Oyo APC alleges
A fresh political tension has emerged in Oyo State as the government has scheduled the coronation and beaded crown ceremony of three Ibadan High Chiefs for April 3, 2026, a move that casts uncertainty over Senator Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli’s reported 2027 governorship ambition on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The ceremony, slated for Mapo Hall, Ibadan, will formally involve the installation of High Chief Akeem Bolaji Adewoyin as Ekerin Olubadan, High Chief Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli as Ekaarun Balogun, and High Chief Kola Babalola as Ekaarun Olubadan.

Alli’s inclusion has attracted attention, given his prominence in the APC and his purported interest in the party’s governorship ticket for 2027 elections.

Palace sources revealed that while Adewoyin requested to be conferred with a beaded crown, Alli did not make a similar request. The revelation has intensified speculation about the timing of the ceremony and its potential political ramifications.

However, the coronation date was communicated in a letter dated March 26, 2026, and addressed to Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, by the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters.

The letter, signed by the Commissioner, Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Ademola Ojo, stated that the exercise was necessary to prevent “unnecessary insinuations” that any delay in the process was deliberate or politically motivated.

Meanwhile, the Olubadan’s media aide, Chief Adeola Oloko, said the palace had received the communication and forwarded it to the affected traditional titleholders.

In another development, the APC in Oyo State has raised the alarm over the dire consequences of what it described as mindless abandonment of governance by Governor Seyi Makinde for politics.

In a statement in Ibadan, yesterday, by its Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, the Oyo APC queried Makinde on the amount of time and resources of the state spent in a bid to take full control of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the expense of the people and residents of the state.