An Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure has dismissed a suit filed by the Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, challenging the recognition of Oba Oluwagbemiga Olofin-Adimula Arulewolasi III as the Iralepo of Isinkan.

The court also affirmed the authority of the Ondo State Government to recognise and upgrade traditional chieftaincies without obtaining the consent of another monarch.

Justice Sunday Olorundahunsi delivered the judgment on Monday in Suit No. AK/434/2022, ruling that no law empowered the Deji to approve or withhold consent for the recognition of traditional rulers in Isinkan and Isolo.

The dispute arose after the Deji challenged the recognition of the Iralepo, arguing that he was the consenting authority for the installation and recognition of traditional rulers within Akure South Local Government Area.

Through his counsel, S.O. Adedeko, the monarch relied on an earlier Court of Appeal judgment to support his position.

The Ondo State Government, represented by F.S. Akinnibosun, also defended its statutory powers to recognise and promote traditional rulers, insisting that such authority could not be transferred to another monarch without a legal basis.

In his ruling, Justice Olorundahunsi upheld the Ondo State Executive Council’s decision to recognise the Iralepo of Isinkan, following the recommendations of the Justice Ajama Commission of Inquiry.

The court subsequently upheld the counterclaims filed by the defendants, including the Ondo State Government and the Iralepo, affirming the traditional ruler’s recognised status.

On the dispute over territorial boundaries, the court relied on documentary evidence, including a judgment of the Akure Native Court presided over by the late Deji Ademuwagun Adesida.

The historical judgment recognised Isinkan’s territorial claim extending from Imogun to the Aponmu/Owena Rivers.

Justice Olorundahunsi ruled that Isinkan and Isolo were autonomous communities and that no existing law vested the Deji with the authority to consent to the recognition of their traditional rulers.

He stressed that a court could not confer on an individual a power that was not established by law.

Consequently, the court restrained the Deji, his agents, chiefs and anyone acting on his behalf from interfering in the affairs of the Iralepo or dealing with the disputed land in Isinkan.

Reacting to the ruling, Oba Olofin-Adimula described the judgment as an affirmation of the customary law governing the Iralepo stool and the historical identity of Isinkan.

He said the decision would allow the community to preserve its traditional institution and enjoy its rights over its ancestral land.