Oba Kolawole Sowemimo, the venerable leader presiding over Owode in Obafemi/Owode Local Government of Ogun State, found himself formally reprimanded on Saturday by the Egba Traditional Council.
This is a temporary expulsion from his role coupled with a withholding of his income for two months, following assertions of misconduct involving the mishandling of Nigerian currency.
In discussions with the press, Sowemimo recounted how the suspension was formally proclaimed during Friday’s assembly of traditional leaders.
‘They said the suspension was due to the way I spent money on one musician.’
‘And when I was asked if I had anything to say, I stood up and apologised for whatever I had done wrong and the suspension which was earlier announced to be for three months without salaries was reduced to two months.’
‘I totally accept the verdict of the council because it is the person that we love that we chastise, so I am good with the decision,’ he said.
In the early days of January, a widely circulated video captured the moment when a distinguished member of the royal family adorned popular Fuji musician Wasiu Ayinde with meticulously arranged N1,000 bills, creating an elegant garland that draped around the musician’s neck.
In response to Sowemimo’s public denigration of the Nigerian currency, the council initiated measures, citing the offense as a direct infringement of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s regulations.
It’s been reported that his suspension occurred during the February statutory session of the Egba Traditional Council, with the influential Alake and paramount ruler of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, presiding over the meeting.
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The assembly, through a collaborative decision, endorsed the suspension of the monarch based on the recommendation put forth by its Ethics Committee. This committee asserted that during his suspension, Sowemimo should refrain from assuming the role of a traditional ruler.
It was further gathered that the resolution emphasized that Sowemimo should not be invited or seen at any government or public function as a traditional ruler, and for three months should not receive any payments.
Oba Saka Matemilola, who presides over the Ethics Committee consisting of three members within the Egba Traditional Council, announced that the committee’s decision was informed by a thorough examination of a widely circulated video showing Sowemimo’s transgression against the cherished customs of Yoruba tradition through the manipulation of Nigeria’s currency.
As the Olowu of Owu and chairman of the committee, he stated that their inquiry exposed instances of the troubled traditional leader adorning himself with scattered naira notes fashioned as beads and placing them around the neck of a musician in full view of the public.
Furthermore, the chairman pointed out that the council received a barrage of public condemnation and scornful remarks directed at the traditional institution in response to this incident, highlighting that the behavior of the said Oba contradicts Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act, 2007.
The National Orientation Agency, in a move last month, sternly cautioned the embattled traditional ruler regarding his mishandling of naira notes during the commemoration of his 13th year as the reigning monarch.
Responding to the video, Director General of the National Orientation Agency, Lanre Issa-Onilu, conveyed in a statement addressed to the monarch that the public exhibition constituted a violation of the national currency regulations, which could lead to imprisonment, fines, or both.