Politicians are dishonoring, demystifying traditional rulers in Nigeria – Justice Olateru-Olagbegi

Traditional Rulers in Nigeria have been so demystified and dishonored, in spite of their importance in the polity, that most of them have become errand boys of politicians, often used and dumped.

This is the verdict of Justice Adesuyi Olateru-Olagbegi, a prince of the Owo Kingdom of Ondo State in Nigeria.

The highly respected Emeritus Judge told Global Patriot Newspapers (Online) recently that the peak of the erosion of the power and grandeur of traditional rulers was when two foremost royal fathers, the then Ooni of Ife and Emir of Kano were stopped from travelling to Israel and restricted to their domains by the federal military government of the time due to political (diplomatic) differences between Nigeria and Israel.

The two otherwise highly revered rulers and all other traditional rulers were thereafter directed to be reporting to their local government chairmen before travelling out of their domains. “That was a very disgraceful, dishonorable slap on the face of the traditional institution,” Justice Olateru-Olagbegi said, stressing that it was, indeed, “the greatest sabotage that could have been imagined.”

He said that this trend has continued, pointing to what the immediate past governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi did by creating several mushroom Obas to whittle down the influence of the Olubadan, the paramount ruler of Ibadanland, as well as what the current governor of Kano State Alhaji Abdullahi Umar Ganduje did recently, also carving out several Emirships in Kano to try to demystify the Emir of Kano, all because political considerations.

Justice Olateru-Olagbegi said that this was not the case in the past, noting that when the British colonialists came, they met well organised governance structures based on traditional rulers, and aware that they could not govern the people without these royal fathers, adopted them as their bridge to reach the governed.

When the British departed, he noted, the succeeding political leaders, like late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, followed suit, with traditional rulers being part of the parliaments of the time. He stressed that his father, late Olowo of Owo, Sir Titus Olateru Olagbegi II, was a member of the Western House of Assembly, insisting that that era was the peak period of the glory of traditional rulers in the country.

He regretted that today, the traditional institution does not even have a place in the country’s constitution, stressing that commissioners and local government chairmen, now take precedence over the natural rulers in the order of protocol.

Noting that these traditional rulers are presently poorly paid by governments whereas their responsibilities to their subjects are enormous, Olateru-Olagbegi, who is currently a highly in demand Legal Consultant, Arbitrator, Private Mediator & Neutral Evaluator, submitted that the traditional rulers are like candles lit at both ends. “Their subjects think they are very well paid by governments and so bring their every problems to be solved by the royal fathers while the governments that pay them poorly still expect so much from them.”

He lamented that the case for constitutional roles for traditional rulers is not even being vigorously canvassed, pointing out, for instance, that in the past, these rulers nominated people for political positions after consultation with other stakeholders in their domains, but now, because of one man one vote, politicians prefer to patronize thugs and other miscreants who can mobilize votes for them by hook or crook.

He said that these politicians arm and fund these thugs and miscreants to snatch and stuff ballot boxes, kill and intimidate opponents on their behalf and then appoint these thugs and miscreants into political positions, just to ensure that they keep the votes coming for them, all to the detriment of the masses.

The traditional rulers that oppose these politicians are deposed, dishonored or belittled in one way or the other while those that play along with them are used and dumped after the politicians get into office, he said.

He stressed that only constitutional recognition of the roles of traditional rulers would reverse this trend and bring out the best that they have to offer the country in such areas as promotion of tourism and the different rich cultures of the country, security of lives and property, national cohesion and sanity in the polity.