The Ogun State High Court in Ijebu-Ode yesterday cautioned all parties involved in the dispute concerning succession to the Awujale stool against taking any steps that could interfere with the court proceedings or change the existing status quo.
Justice A. A. Omoniyi issued the caution while hearing a suit filed by the Fusengbuwa ruling house over the succession process for the vacant position of the Awujale and Paramount Ruler of Ijebuland.
The warning came after counsel to the Fusengbuwa ruling house, Otunba Olusegun Otayemi, asked the court to restrain the parties from taking any action that could alter the prevailing situation until the case was determined.
Otayemi told the court that an order preserving the status quo was necessary to prevent any of the parties from taking steps that might affect the subject matter of the litigation while the case was ongoing.
In his response, Justice Omoniyi said there was, at that point, no reason for the court to presume that either side would take such action.
The judge nevertheless stated that any party who acted in breach of the court’s directives would be stopped and ordered to revert to the position it occupied before taking such action.
Justice Omoniyi’s pronouncement served as a warning to the parties that the court would not permit any attempt to change the circumstances surrounding the contested succession process while the matter remained before it.
Counsel to the kingmakers, Kunle Kalejaiye, SAN, also urged the parties to avoid any conduct that could constitute disobedience of an injunction, warning that such actions could have legal consequences.
Kalejaiye cited the principle established in Ojukwu v. Governor of Lagos State, stressing that parties involved in litigation are required to respect the court process and avoid actions capable of frustrating or undermining an injunction.
He argued that parties should refrain from acting contrary to the court’s directives, even if a formal temporary injunction had not yet been prepared.
The latest proceedings form part of the continuing legal battle over the process of choosing a successor to the late Awujale and Paramount Ruler of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, who died in July 2025 at the age of 91 after 65 years on the throne.
Following the death of the monarch, the Fusengbuwa ruling house approached the Ogun State High Court after the succession exercise was halted, despite the ruling house having concluded its internal nomination process.
The ruling house maintains that it fulfilled its statutory obligation by holding its meeting and completing the nomination exercise within the timeframe stipulated by law.
In the suit filed on August 21, 2026, the Fusengbuwa ruling house is asking the court, among other things, to determine whether the Ogun State Government possesses the legal power to suspend or interfere with the selection process.
It is also asking the court to determine whether the Ogun State Obas and Chiefs Law 2021 empowers the government to halt the nomination and selection process under any circumstances.
During yesterday’s proceedings, Justice Omoniyi, who is scheduled to proceed on annual vacation, returned the case file to the administrative judge for reassignment.
The matter was subsequently adjourned until September 23, 2026, for mention.
