Oyo Empire Belongs to History: No Yoruba Monarch Holds Supremacy Over Others — Tinubu’s Aide Declares
A Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, has ignited intense debate across Yorubaland by asserting that the era of the ancient Oyo Empire's dominance is firmly in the past, and no contemporary Yoruba monarch holds supremacy over others. In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, January 17, 2026, Ajayi attached a photograph of the current Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade, while emphasizing the need for modern traditional rulers to prioritize collaboration over claims of hierarchical superiority. “We are no longer in the era of the Oyo Empire,” Ajayi wrote. “Rome and the United Kingdom, that once ruled more than half of the world as empires, can no longer claim sovereignty over their former colonies. Times have changed. We are now in a new world.” He further stated: “Oyo Empire now belongs to history and the whole of what we now know as Yorubaland was never under the rule of the Alaafin.” Ajayi urged Yoruba mon...