Oyo Obas Chairmanship: Soun Heads For Appeal Court

By Dolapo Ekenade - 15.03.2008

The Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Jimoh Oyewunmi Ajagungbade III, has filed an appeal against the ruling of an Ibadan High Court, which stuck out his suit where he had challenged the position of the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi as the permanent chairman of the Oyo State council of Obas and Chiefs.

The notice of appeal dated 10 March 2008 and endorsed by Soun’s counsel, Kunle Sobaloju, challenged the ruling of the court, saying it deviated from the main issue before it.

The grounds of appeal stated that the trail judge, Justice Adegboyega Gbolagunte, erred in law when he held that he could not entertain the suit as it constituted an abuse of court process because the reliefs sought therein are substantially the same as one that was earlier decided in a suit before Justice Masud Abass of an Ibadan High Court.

It stated further that the judgment delivered by Justice Abass in suit no I/955/05 and the instant case marked I/355/07 were not the same, because while the plaintiff in the former case challenged the dissolution of the Council of Obas, the Soun in the instant case is contesting the right of the Alaafin to be made permanent chairman of the Council.

The notice of appeal raised the issue of the court’s decision as being given outside the main issue before the court, which was its lack of jurisdiction.

It stated that the court could not decide on jurisdiction and simultaneously determine on the merits of the case before it.

The plaintiff also filed a motion for an injunction of the court to restrain the respondents, Oyo State governor, State Attorney-General and from further recognising the Alaafin as the permanent chairman of the council or convening or holding meetings of the Oyo State council of Obas and Chiefs with the Alaafin as permanent chairman pending the hearing and final determination of the Soun’s appeal against the March 7 ruling of the lower court.