.. Respondents given 14 days to respond to monarch’s suit challenging suspension
Daud Olatunji
The Federal High Court in Abeokuta, Ogun State, has directed the Eselu of Iselu Kingdom, Oba Ebenezer Akinyemi, to serve Governor Dapo Abiodun and other respondents with the originating summons and accompanying court processes within seven days.
The court also gave the respondents 14 days from the date of service to file their responses to the suit challenging the monarch’s suspension by the Ogun State Government.
Justice Agatha Okeke gave the directives on Wednesday while ruling on an ex parte application filed by Akinyemi, who is challenging his suspension as the traditional ruler of Iselu Kingdom in Yewa North Local Government Area of Ogun State.
The judge further directed the parties to address the court on its jurisdiction to entertain the suit at the next hearing.
The development followed the monarch’s suit against Abiodun and three others over the suspension letter dated October 20, 2026, which directed him to vacate the palace and stop parading himself as the Eselu of Iselu Kingdom.
Other respondents in the suit are the Ogun State Attorney-General, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, the Nigeria Police Force and the Commissioner of Police, Ogun State.
Akinyemi had approached the court through an originating summons, seeking to challenge the legality of his suspension, which he alleged was imposed without prior notice or an opportunity to defend himself against the allegations.
In his application dated October 23, 2026, the monarch sought interim orders restraining the respondents, their agents and officers from enforcing the suspension letter.
He also asked the court to prevent the respondents from compelling him to vacate the Eselu Palace, stopping him from parading himself as the traditional ruler or interfering with his use of royal insignia, including his crown and other traditional paraphernalia.
However, while ruling on the application, Justice Okeke held that the monarch failed to comply with the provisions of Order 26 Rule 5(3) of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2019, which requires an application for an ex parte injunction to be accompanied by a motion on notice.
The judge observed that the applicant filed an originating summons and a motion ex parte but failed to file a corresponding motion on notice for an interlocutory injunction.
The judge also held that the applicant failed to establish sufficient grounds to justify granting the orders without first hearing the respondents.
She noted that although the suspension letter directed the monarch to vacate the palace with immediate effect, there was no affidavit evidence showing that the respondents had taken steps to enforce the directive or that an immediate threat existed.
The court further observed that the applicant’s claim that the respondents could enforce the suspension at any moment was not supported by sufficient facts explaining the source of his apprehension.
Justice Okeke warned that granting the reliefs sought could effectively determine issues that ought to be resolved in the substantive suit, particularly whether the third respondent had the authority to suspend the monarch and whether the applicant was denied his right to fair hearing.
The judge, however, made no determination on the legality of the suspension, stressing that the substantive issues remained for adjudication.
The court also directed the parties to address it on whether the Federal High Court had jurisdiction to entertain the suit, noting that the dispute substantially concerned the monarch’s occupation of the palace and the incidents of a traditional chieftaincy stool.
The Ogun State Government had announced Akinyemi’s suspension on October 20, 2026, over alleged partisan political activities.
The government, in a statement issued by the Governor’s Special Adviser on Media, Kayode Akinmade, said the suspension was approved by the State Executive Council pursuant to Section 52(1) of the Ogun State Obas and Chiefs Law 2021, pending a detailed investigation into complaints against the monarch.
The government had also cited allegations bordering on the traditional ruler’s alleged involvement in overtly partisan political activities.
The monarch, however, is challenging the action, insisting that he was not given prior notice or an opportunity to respond to the allegations before the suspension was imposed.
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