How govts’ interference in traditional institutions erodes monarchs’ influence

In May 2023, the Sokoto State government exonerated ) Ibrahim Dasuki, the late Sultan of Sokoto, who was deposed in 1996 following allegations of insubordination and causing strife, among other offences by the then military administration of late Sani Abacha.

While the exoneration came 27 years after his dethronement, the brazen manner of the dethronement is still intriguing till date.

On the day he was deposed, the Sultan was called into the office of Yakubu Muazu, the then military administrator of Sokoto State, and was told he has been deposed as the Sultan.

That was all it took to bring down the revered monarch, who was banished afterwards to Zing, a dusty town in Taraba State.

In the case of Oluwadare Adesina, the former Deji of Akure, the Ondo State government just invoked sections 17(1) and (2) of the state’s chiefs law to depose the royal father in 2009.

Of course, Kano is just recovering from the controversial ruling by the Federal High Court Kano, which placed it with two ruling emirs.

But Igwe Damian Ezeani, the paramount ruler of Neni Town, in Anambra State, who was suspended on January 8, 2024, by the state government and later reinstated, learnt his lesson in a hard way.

The royal father almost lost his throne for conferring chieftaincy title on an illustrious son of the state, who the government perceived as opposition, hence the invoking of the Section 2 (C) of the Anambra State Traditional Rulers (Amendment) Law, 2020, to suspend the Igwe.

Speaking on the issue, Magnus Ikue, a lawyer, decried the spate of dethronement across the country and government’s interference in the traditional institutions.

According to him, most of the interferences are politically motivated, as the government use fiat to silence opposition even from revered thrones.

Citing the Kogi State’s case, Ikue, a serial entrepreneur, lamented that the deposing of some first-class traditional rulers by Yahaya Bello, the then governor of the state, barely 20 days before exiting office, was uncalled for.

Read also: Economy: Governors, traditional rulers meet in Aso Rock, seek solutions

“It was obvious that Alhaji Abdulrazaq Isa Koto, Ohimege Igu, Konto-Nkarfe, and other deposed royal fathers did not support the governor’s candidate in the 2023 gubernatorial election.
“For me, the dethronment and banishing to Niger State by the governor, just few days to his exit, is the height of intimidation and interference,” Ikue said.

In the same vein, Emeka Modilim, an Nnewi-based politician, faulted Governor Chukwuma Soludo on the suspension of the Igwe of Neni for conferring chieftaincy title on the late Ifeanyi Ubah, an illustrious son of the state.

“The suspension was to intimidate the royal father and others from supporting the opposition because the late Ifeanyi Ubah was gearing up to challenge Soludo in the 2025 gubernatorial election.

“It is a pity, when it comes to the quest for power, we politicians are the same, whether educated or not. I did not expect Soludo to go that far,” Modilim, a university don turned politician, said.

But Chijioke Umelahi, an Abuja-based lawyer, blamed the situation on the Nigerian Constitution, which gives jurisdiction over chieftaincy affairs to the states.

What this means, according to him, is that the traditional institution is at the mercy of the states, particularly the governors, who can influence the House of Assembly to enact or repeal laws in their favour.

“The sacking and reinstatement of the emirs wouldn’t have been possible if not for the passage of the Kano Emirate Council Repeal Law.
“The two governors, the one that sacked and the one that reinstated, took advantage of the law due to the misinterpretations and ulterior motives,” Umelahi explained.

The former Abia lawmaker regretted that such interference by the government only cause more harm than good as the government does not follow procedures, the wish of the people and traditions in appointing replacements for deposed rulers.

“So, if I sponsor a governor or contribute to the electorial victory of a politician, I can ask for my town’s throne as part of my compensation whether I am from a royal lineage or not. This is why allegations are often levelled against some royal father and deposed afterwards. It is a sad reality that has eroded the influence of traditional rulers across the country,” Umelahi lamented.

Yohana Musa, a medical doctor, who has royal blood, noted that the throne is no longer as glamorous and revered as it used to be because the king is now a subject of the governor, who can remove him at will.

“If the Sultan of Sokoto and Emirs of Kano have been deposed, then which traditional ruler cannot be deposed. It takes a local government chairman or governor who don’t like you to announce your dethronement and that is all. You can go to court and the court will ask you to go to the Ministry of Chieftaincy Affairs to resolve your matter.

“So, all traditional rulers in the country are at the mercy of the governors and that is why they are often intimidated to support the governors against their will and moral standards,” Musa said.

Speaking further, Musa, who watched the coronation of the new Alafin of Oyo, observed that if Governor Seyi Makinde delayed or refused to give him the staff of office, there will be no Alafin.

“It sounds funny, but that is the reality. If any governor refuses to recognise a traditional ruler, that is the end of his reign as king. So, I will rather go for a political office than the throne because that is where executive power is. Who cares who is king when you cannot influence your subjects again,” he decried.

But Bem Hembafan, a retired senior security officer, differed from the above opinion, insisting that some traditional rulers still have influence.
According to him, some traditional rulers, who were rightly chosen, say and do the right things without fearing the government.

“God bless our Tor Tiv, James Ortese Iorzua Ayatse. He faced President Tinubu when he visited Benue last month and told him, his entourage and the governor, the truth that killers of Benue people are not outsiders, but herdsmen.

“He risked his throne to do that because he is firm, clean and not after peanut stipends from the government. So, he is very influential and the government knows that,” Hembafan said.

He also applauded the Oba of Benin as one of such influential royal fathers, noting that no government has been able to toy with the Benin traditional institution because of their high integrity and distancing from politics.

“Apart from the dethronement of Ovonramwen Nogbaisi as Oba of Benin in 1897 by the British colonial government, none of such attempt has ever happened since then. Yes, because of how Benin Kingdom has carried its affairs in dignity and distancing from politics,” the Benue-born security expert said.

Toeing the same line, Umelahi noted that traditional rulers who still have influence today are those that respect the sanctity of their thrones, those who leave politics and business for politicians and business people, and also does not near social media.

“I see first-class traditional rulers thronging Aso Rock for whatever reasons best known to them. But you cannot hobnob with politicians without soiling your hands. The best is to respect yourself, stay on throne and Aso Rock will come to pay homage because traditional rulers are supposed to be non-partisan,” Umelahi said.

However, observers noted that those who are not speaking out, especially against the poor governance and corruption in the country are doing so based on the intimidation of their colleagues by the government, as deposed traditional rulers often lose all.

But those who wield influence today are those who still risk their throne to speak truth to power, but they are very few, observers regretted.