A Senior Special Assistant to Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, has stirred public conversation after stating that the Oyo Empire belongs strictly to history and no longer holds relevance in defining leadership or supremacy among Yoruba traditional rulers in modern times.
Ajayi made the assertion in a post shared on X on Saturday, where he attached a photograph of the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, while dismissing claims of hierarchical authority among Yoruba monarchs.
According to him, the age of imperial dominance associated with the old Oyo Empire has passed, stressing that contemporary realities no longer support claims of supremacy by any single traditional stool.
“We are no longer in the era of the Oyo Empire,” Ajayi wrote. “Rome and the United Kingdom, that once ruled more than half of the world as empires, can no longer claim sovereignty over former colonies. Times have changed. We are now in a new world.”
He cautioned against equating historical influence with present-day authority, noting that the geographical spread of the old Oyo Empire did not amount to absolute control over the entirety of Yorubaland.
“Oyo Empire now belongs to history and the whole of what we now know as Yorubaland was never under the rule of the Alaafin,” he stated.
Ajayi further urged traditional rulers across the South-West to align with modern leadership realities by promoting cooperation rather than rivalry, saying this approach would better serve their people.
“The society will function well if the current natural rulers in Yorubaland understand their roles in modern society.”
“Our kings should now work collaboratively to preserve peace, unity and development in their communities whilst preserving our cultural values,” he said.
