Southern Monarchs have passed Vote of Confidence on Tinubu – Ooni of Ife

By Kazeem Ugbodaga

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has declared that traditional rulers across Southern Nigeria have unanimously passed a vote of confidence on President Bola Tinubu, emphasising that national stability requires collective support for the current administration regardless of political differences.

Speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday, the foremost monarch said traditional institutions would no longer allow politics to undermine national security or distract the country from urgent threats posed by criminal groups advancing towards the South.

Oba Ogunwusi said southern traditional rulers reached the decision after assessing the political climate, rising insecurity, and the need for stronger collaboration between traditional authorities and elected leaders.

“We have concluded, the entire South, to pass a vote of confidence on our current president, Bola Tinubu,” he said.

“We need to support him because saving Nigeria is very important. You condemn this leader, you condemn that leader; so which one will you eventually use? Nigeria is bigger than any of them (Politicians),” he added.

The Ooni, who participated in the recent Iperu security meeting of southern monarchs with governors, said traditional rulers had resolved to “close ranks” with political leaders to confront politically motivated insecurity, insisting that the attacks in many communities have clear political undertones.

“Absolutely, it is politically motivated. And that is what we are trying to guard against. That is why southern monarchs have come together. We have over 200 dialects and languages in the South, but we have put all that behind us to unite like never before. We want to save Nigeria,” Ooni said.

He warned that security threats migrating from the northern region into the South have been confirmed by intelligence reports, stressing that traditional institutions were already taking decisive steps.

“Yes, we have discovered that, and it is true,” he said, stressing, “That is the reason why we are strengthening our local guards. We are returning to our ancestral security structures. Whatever we can legitimately use to protect ourselves, we have agreed that this is the way forward.”

The Ooni added that the Southwest’s reputation for hospitality had made the region vulnerable, but vowed that monarchs would resist any attempt by criminal networks to overrun Yoruba communities.

“We have intelligence showing that these elements are coming closer to us, and we will push them back. It has happened before in the 17th and 18th centuries, we defended our territories. It will not be allowed to happen again,” he said.

Oba Ogunwusi also criticised the politicisation of security, saying political actors bear responsibility for creating divisions that have weakened the country’s collective defence against crime.

“Why should they bring politics into security matters? It is enough,” he said, saying that “These politicians have been there from day one. What have they done? Nigeria is bigger than them. It is not their personal entitlement; it is the heritage of the people.”

Insisting that stability under the current administration is more important than political contestation, the Ooni said traditional rulers now see it as their duty to rally citizens behind President Tinubu.

“God has brought our leader, President Bola Tinubu, by providence to lead us,” he said, and that “As a traditional ruler, I am not talking politics. We must support him because the survival of Nigeria is essential.”

He added that southern monarchs would strengthen partnerships with governors and later hold joint security reviews with northern traditional rulers to maintain a national front against insecurity.

“First, we have come together to protect the South,” he said, saying that “Going forward, we will conduct peer reviews with our northern counterparts, and from there we will move collectively to secure the entire country.”