24/01/2026
How Alaafin Adeniran Adeyemi II Was Dethroned & Banished From Oyo Kingdom
Before Alaafin Adeniran Adeyemi II ascended the throne of his ancestors in 1945, his grandfather, Oba Adeyemi I Alowolodu, had reigned from 1876 to 1905. Adeyemi II would sit on the royal seat from 1945 until he was unceremoniously dethroned in July 1955. But what really happened?
On a Sunday, the 26th of March, 1950, eight people at the Oke Ado, Ibadan residence of Chief Obafemi Awolowo sat for their first meeting. They were there to establish their new party, which they called Action Group. The head was Obafemi Awolowo and he listed what Nigerians in general and the people of Western Nigeria in particular will enjoy if they joined his party as:
Freedom from British rule
Freedom from ignorance
Freedom from disease
Freedom from want
Awolowo elaborated these Four Freedoms to be:
The immediate termination of British rule in every phase of the people’s political life.
The education of all children of school-going age, and the general enlightenment of all illiterate adults, and all illiterate children above school-going age (Adult Education).
The provision of health and general welfare for all the people.
The total abolition of want in the society by means of any economic policy which is both expedient and efficient.......................................
As at the time when Awolowo and his allies founded the Action Group (he was the national president of the party), Alaafin Adeyemi II was the undisputed ruler of Oyo. While Awolowo launched his relentless fights against the British imperialists, the Alaafin ruled in his own domain.
After Awolowo launched his Action Group party, other prominent individuals too went off and established theirs in other parts of Nigeria, a good example being the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC). Before Awolowo started his political party, party politics in Nigeria was limited to Lagos and Calabar only...............................
. After the elections in 1952, Chief Bode Thomas became the Chairman of the Oyo Divisional Native Authority (controlling Oyo town and its hinterland) while Chief Abiodun Akerele became the Chairman of the Oyo Southern District Native Authority.
The interesting thing to note here is that both councils were under the direct control of Oba Adeyemi when he became the Alaafin in 1945. The British colonialists changed the arrangement.
Well, it did not take long before Alaafin Adeniran and members of Action Group allies became sworn enemies. With their men in power, the Action Group started reeling out new policies that directly affected the oligarchic powers of the Alaafin.
The first illustration here will be the Native Court Reforms of 1952 by the Bode Thomas-led Oyo Divisional Native Authority. The reforms affected one of the main sources of money and political influence of the Alaafin by replacing the Iwarefa chiefs (the traditional judges) with their own new appointees.
Not only that, the very process of the 1950-51 elections meant that the Senior chiefs, Baales (district heads) and other groups had to jostle for their own share in the new political space.
This change in the political base and power of the Alaafin of Oyo who had been the all-powerful paramount ruler was not accepted by the king.
The Action Group government also introduced tax program which included a ten shilling capitation tax and a four shilling education rate. There was also a new form of tax collection. For seven years, the collection and assessment of taxes were done by the Alaafin but with this new tax policy by the Action Group, that was not going to ever happen again. A furious Alaafin rapidly withdrew his support from the Action Group and its sister organizations like the Egbe Omo Oduduwa. The angry king would later say:
‘…no sooner had power come into the hands of our highly-sophisticated ambitious African politicians through the introduction and implementation of the new constitution, the reverse began to appear (Action Group domination)…and later, upon closer examination of their policy and method I withdrew my public support.’....................................
The Alaafin Adeniran was not bluffing. He followed his words with action and in a letter declining the invitation of the Secretary of the Egbe Omo Oduduwa, Sir Kofo Abayomi (the same person the Alaafin had earlier made the Ona-Isokun of Oyo), to the 1952 General Assembly of the organization in Lagos, Oba Adeyemi reminded him of an incident in which Chief Abiodun Akerele turned the local people against him and at another event where Chief Bode Thomas addressed a meeting at Atiba Hall without formally inviting him. For Alaafin Adeyemi, that was an insult too great.
From that moment on, the Alaafin pressed on and deliberately went against the government policies and gave his full support to the opposition at both the regional and local levels.
A worthy example was in early 1953 when he alongside his Crown Prince (Aremo), actively went against the new tax policies and told the people not to cooperate. In a meeting inside the aafin (palace), the Alaafin was said to have passed a resolution against the government’s education and capitation taxes. .
Supporters of the king were accused of intimidating opponents and in 1950 when the Oyo Native Authority (NA) Council was formed; some of the councilors who disagreed with the Alaafin Adeniran were reportedly attacked. In another case that grabbed the headlines, Thomas accused the Crown Prince Tiamiyu Adebayo Adeniran of aggravated assault. The case was so serious that the Aremo was actually convicted later that year but during an appeal, he was subsequently cleared. Alaafin was accused of power abuse and violation of his traditional authorities. .........
The British representative P C Lloyd held the view that the colonial policies sapped the local chiefs of the customary powers to rein in the more powerful paramount rulers (Obas). He said:
‘The chief lost their control over their Obas and in his new autocratic position, the king often failed to consult with the Council of Chiefs. Policies were arranged over their heads, they were merely told of decisions reached by the Obas and his white friends the colonial administrators.’
Awolowo felt the Yoruba Obas were too powerful and their wings had to be clipped and Lloyd shared his view. So that led to the introduction of the House of Chiefs by the Western Regional Government under Awolowo. It was a clear attempt to rein in the Yoruba kings and chiefs and bring them under control of the regional government...........
And that was how the political cold war became worse. But the Alaafin of Oyo’s foe was not only Awolowo. He had also had serious issues with Chief Bode Thomas who was then the Deputy Leader of the Action Group and installed as the Balogun of Oyo in 1950 and later the Chairman of the Oyo Divisional Council under the presidency of the Alaafin.
In 1952, this delicate balance of power was toppled when Alaafin Adeniran disagreed with Bode Thomas over some policies of AG and running of the Divisional Council especially on Taxation, and Oba Adeniran continuous acquisition of wives of over 200, most of who rely on government patronage, and subversion of government tax.
The Action Group-controlled Oyo Divisional Council made a decision to slash the salary of the Alaafin by whopping 650 pounds sterling (about $2,000). This salary slash adversely affected Alaafin Adeniran, a man with extraordinarily large family......
The whole conflict plunged and took a far worse dimension back in time on the 20th of November 1953 when news filtered all over the country that Chief Bode Thomas, the brilliant lawyer, legendary politician, Federal Minister of Transport (for Western Region) and Chairman of the Oyo Division Council died at the painfully young age of 34. It was also the birthday of his second daughter. His demise was the final straw that split the backbone of the camel as far as the Awolowo camp was concerned.
This was so terrible that the angry members of the Action Group launched a violent attack on the properties especially cars and buildings of supporters of Oba Adeniran(no life was lost in the first incident), the supporters of Oba Adeniran and NCNC(who the Alaafin had teamed up in opposition to the AG/Awo/Thomas/Akerele) reacted immediately and stormed the Action Group meeting in Oyo, an action which led to the death of about six AG loyalists. Throughout the rest of 1954, there were further clashes and counter clashes resulting in injury of many and destruction of properties worth thousands of pounds.
When in September of the same year, an emergency committee composed of seven Yoruba rulers including the Alaafin, the Ooni of Ife Oba Adesoji Aderemi, and the Alake of Egbaland, as well as fourteen leaders of the Egbe Omo Oduduwa was convened, the Alaafin was accused of conspiring to work against the regional government and the party in power.
Awolowo then stated that the government had outrun their patience and could no longer tolerate his insubordination, and after consultation with the other Obas, Alaafin Adeniran was suspended from office and removed from the Native Authority.
Sir Richard Lloyd, senior crown counsel to Sir John Macpherson opined that the elected councillors could have shown more tolerance to the older members of the council who were majorly illiterates and could not easily understand or adapt to the new system. The 84-year-old Alaafin was banished to Ilesha. The Oba eventually relocated to Lagos where he was housed by a wealthy NCNC stalwart Alhaji N.B, Soule, a citizen of Benin Republic and fellow Muslim. Alaafin Adeniran Adeyemi 11 died in 1960.....5 years after his banishment. ....................................….....
You will recollect that there has been some disagreements between Chief Awolowo, Chief Abiodun Akerele, Sir Kofo Abayomi AND Alaafin Adeniran. However, the rift between the Chairman of the Oyo Divisional Council, Chief Bode Thomas;Alaafin of Oyo, AREMO Tiamiyu Adebayo Adeniran had become very pronounced and so with his death, all fingers pointed at the aged Yoruba monarch.
Till the very moment there are controversies on what truly killed Late Transport/Works Minister Bode Thomas........but there are those who will swear by the graves of their ancestors that it was the curse Alaafin and the Ogbonis placed on Bode Thomas that killed him (the fable is that Thomas barked until he died though no one saw him bark but he had serious cough) while some others went to town that it was the poison administered by the agents of the Alaafin Adeniran or even the Alaafin himself that snuffed life out of the youthful political war horse.
At the funeral of Chief Bode Thomas, Awolowo reinforced this rumour when he blasted the Alaafin in the eulogy for Thomas, he said:
‘…let no evil doer
imagine that he had
an unrestricted field
for the ex*****on
of his diabolic plans.
For Bode may yet prove stronger
in death than alive.’
ALAAFIN ADEYEMI II IN EXILE
. When he was dethroned, St. John the Baptist Laduga, the Bashorun of Oyo took his position.
