The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade, has firmly denied allegations of a royal supremacy tussle with any other traditional ruler, describing a recent viral video making such claims as “malicious and fabricated.”
In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Director of Media and Publicity, Bode Durojaiye, in Ibadan, the monarch urged members of the public to ignore the misleading online content, particularly a YouTube video posted by a platform identified as Awikonko TV.
Oba Owoade described the video’s narrator as a “pathological liar” who deserved to be “confined to the dungeon of eternity” for spreading falsehoods aimed at tarnishing his image and that of the revered Oyo throne.
The monarch was reacting to claims in the video that he allegedly ordered his men to assault the father of a visiting monarch from Oyotunji Village in the United States — a village that traces its ancestral roots to Oyo — in what the video termed a supremacy battle with the Ooni of Ife.
Dismissing the story as baseless, the Alaafin clarified that the Oyotunji community has historically enjoyed cordial relations with the Oyo palace. He explained that the Oyotunji monarch had paid a congratulatory visit after his coronation and was warmly received, just as during the reign of the late Alaafin, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III.
“The video shown neither correlates nor synchronises with the anchor’s claims,” the statement said. “How possible is it for the Alaafin to order the beating of a monarch from a village that identifies Oyo town as its ancestral home?”
Oba Owoade emphasised that the throne of Alaafin is rooted in diplomacy, tradition, and the cultural advancement of the Yoruba people, not in rivalry.
He added that the Alaafin institution, which led the historic Oyo Empire — one of the world’s longest-lasting empires — is focused on unity and progress, not petty disputes.
“The Alaafin is not in a supremacy battle with anyone,” the statement concluded, “but rather concerned about the progress and development of his country home and the emancipation of the entire Yoruba race.”
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