Court stops Sanwo-Olu from installing man as monarch

A Lagos State High Court sitting in Epe has barred Governor Babajide Sanwo‑Olu from installing or recognising Adelaja Akeem as the Alaketu‑elect in the Ketu area of the state. The court also ordered Akeem to stop presenting himself as the traditional ruler of Ketu town in the Ikosi‑Ejirin Local Council Development Area of Epe Local Government Area. A copy of the order was made available to our correspondent in Akure, the capital of Ondo State, on Tuesday.

The community’s stool became vacant after the death of Oba Adegboyega Adefowora in 2021, sparking controversy over his succession. Several princes contested the throne, and three of them—Prince Adekoya Adefowora, Prince Taiwo Olayemi, and Prince Rasheed Adesanya—filed a suit through their lawyer, Mr. Tajudeen Kotun, to stop Akeem from portraying himself as the head and traditional ruler‑elect of the community.

In the suit, the plaintiffs named as defendants Governor Sanwo‑Olu, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, the Executive Chairman of Ikosi‑Ejirin LCDA, Adelaja Akeem, Chief Mutiu Olokodana (the Oluwo of Ketu), Chief Lateef Bello (the Eleku of Ketu), and Chief Nasiriyu Tawariyu (the Apena of Ketu). The fifth defendant, Akeem, was alleged to be parading himself as the next Alaketu while the matter remained pending in court. The plaintiffs also sought to restrain the other defendants from installing or recognising Akeem as Alaketu‑elect, arguing that the kingship dispute was still unresolved.

Justice S. A. Olaitan granted an interlocutory injunction. The order restrains the first to fourth defendants—Governor Sanwo‑Olu, the two commissioners, and the LCDA Chairman—from installing or recognising Akeem as Alaketu‑elect pending the hearing of the substantive suit. It also restrains the sixth to eighth defendants—the traditional chiefs of Ketu—from installing, recognising, or presenting Akeem as Alaketu‑elect to the first to fourth defendants. Additionally, Akeem himself is barred from parading as Alaketu‑elect in any manner until the substantive case is determined. The court adjourned the matter until May 3, 2023.

In reaction, applicant Prince Adekoya Adefowora warned that, while the case is pending, “nobody is entitled to start parading himself as the new Alaketu of Ketu.” He urged the community’s residents to remain calm.