• Urge Makinde, Adeleke to initiate ceasefire between feuding monarchs
• Obas have no political power, only influence, says Omotayo
• Igboho denies disrespecting Alaafin during visit to Ooni

The Yoruba Leaders of Thought, under the auspices of the Egbe Ilosiwaju Yoruba, have appealed to Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi and the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Owoade, to end the war of attrition and give peace a chance.
 
The Yoruba leaders also called on Oyo and Osun states’ governors to initiate an immediate ceasefire between the revered royal fathers and their supporters.
 
In a statement made available to journalists in Ado-Ekiti, yesterday, by its National Secretary, Bayo Aina, on behalf of the National Leader, Tajudeen Oluyole Olusi, the group noted with great pain the damage that the current distraction had caused the Yoruba people globally. 
 
The statement read I part: “Rather than using such good narratives for the purpose of forging unity and a sense of pride among our people, historical narratives have been weaponised into a tool to promote discord and resentment. 
 
“We are distraught that at a time when every hand should be on deck to support and ensure unquestionable success of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, some of our foremost leaders at various levels are more or less fuelling this fire, which appeared to have started from Ile Osanyin as it were.”
 
The leaders expressed suddenness that many people are taking sides in a narrative that has no capacity to transform the current struggles of people in Nigeria into a resounding victory over the existing technological and developmental gap between her and the rest of the world.

HOWEVER, former Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Mozambique, Albert G.P. Omotayo, has said that the limited roles of monarchs in contemporary Nigeria are ceremonial rather than political.
 
Omotayo said that the Yoruba Empire no longer exists and warned against reviving historical power struggles. He said: “We must understand that there is a world of difference between influence and power. No Oba has power. All they have is influence.
 
“Neither of them has political power. None of them can rule beyond his territory.” He, therefore, urged the stakeholders to prioritise unity instead of engaging in supremacy battles, noting that the current crisis was unnecessary and harmful to Yoruba cohesion.

MEANWHILE, a Yoruba Nation activist, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, has refuted the claims that he disrespected Alaafin of Oyo during his visit at the weekend to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.

Igboho, while reacting to a viral report sparked by the comments he made at the Ooni’s palace, described the interpretation of his words as a misunderstanding, insisting that he could never insult the Alaafin, whom he regarded as a foremost traditional ruler and a father figure.
 
He recalled: “In a video that circulated widely on Saturday night, “my father, the Olugbon, called me and said the Alaafin felt I insulted him when I visited the Ooni. I want to make it clear that I never abused the Alaafin.

“I can’t and I won’t. The Alaafin is not a small monarch in Yorubaland. I am from Oyo, and the Alaafin is my father.” He attributed the confusion during the visit to cultural practices, adding, “When I visited the Ooni, the traditional drummers and singers praised me with my family heritage, and I only added to it. I said Ooni is a father of peace.
 
“I was surprised when he still welcomed me warmly, celebrated me and prayed for me despite all that had happened before. That was what I was emphasising. I didn’t insult the Alaafin.
 
“If my words were misunderstood, I ask for forgiveness. I never meant to insult the Alaafin.” The activist stressed that he would never utter disparaging words against any monarch, noting that harmony among royal fathers remained one of his key priorities.