Abuja Summit Boils Over as Ooni, Enugu Monarch Dispute Legitimacy of Southern Traditional Council

Matilda Omonaiye/

A sharp public disagreement has emerged among southern traditional rulers over the legitimacy and authority of the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers’ Council, exposing deeper tensions about representation, federal engagement and the distribution of public resources.

The dispute unfolded on Tuesday at the National Traditional and Religious Leaders Summit on Health in Abuja, attended by President Bola Tinubu and senior government officials including Coordinating Minister of Health, Professor Muhammad Pate.

The Ogbunechendo of Ezema Olo Kingdom in Enugu State, Lawrence Agubuzu, declared that “there is nothing like a Southern Traditional Rulers’ Council”, warning federal authorities against recognising or disbursing funds through such a body.

“If you come here and give money to people on that basis, it’s not correct,” Agubuzu said during his address. He insisted that the South does not operate a centralised traditional system similar to the North and urged the Federal Government to deal directly with recognised structures in the South-East.

“Democracy is representative government, and anybody who goes to present himself without his people is not democratic or traditional,” he added, appealing directly to President Tinubu to heed the concerns raised.

Responding shortly afterwards, the Ooni of Ife, Adeyeye Ogunwusi, rejected the claim that the council does not exist, describing it as a voluntary but influential platform.

“The Southern Traditional Council is very optional. You don’t need to join us if you don’t want to join us, but it’s a force, a formidable force among traditional institutions,” he told journalists.

Ogunwusi stressed that the body was not designed to sideline the South-East, stating that several prominent Igbo monarchs were actively involved.

“We don’t want to take out the South-East. We have the Eze Aro here. We have a lot of South-Eastern traditional rulers with whom we are working together for the betterment of the country,” he said, in an apparent attempt to calm impressions of division before the President.

Backing the Ooni’s position, the Eze Aro of Arochukwu Kingdom, Eberechukwu Oji, who identified himself as publicity secretary of the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers’ Council, described the council as “a movement” spanning the South-West, South-East and South-South.

He asserted that the Federal Government had formally recognised the body, noting that President Tinubu was present at its inauguration in Owerri.

“It happened in Owerri, and we have representatives of the press, the government and stakeholders in that inauguration,” Oji said.

Agubuzu’s intervention suggests concern that a centralised southern council could overshadow constitutionally recognised state-based traditional structures, particularly in the South-East where monarchies operate under distinct customary frameworks.

The disagreement also underscores longstanding structural differences between northern and southern traditional systems. In the North, emirate structures historically evolved under more centralised hierarchies. In the South, authority is often more fragmented, reflecting diverse ethnic and historical configurations.

President Tinubu has not publicly commented on the disagreement. However, the exchange at a nationally televised summit signals that questions of representation among traditional rulers remain sensitive, especially where federal engagement and resource allocation are involved.