How Ooni of Ife Led Nigeria’s Traditional Rulers to the Presidential Villa: The Full Story

THE STORY BEHIND HOW OONIRISA LED THE TRADITIONAL RULERS COUNCIL TO THE PRESIDENTIAL VILLA

Yesterday in Abuja, members of the National Traditional Rulers Council from across Nigeria converged at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel for a scheduled engagement with the Federal Government at the Presidential Villa.

Upon their arrival, Arole Oduduwa, OONIRISA OBA ADEYEYE ENITAN OGUNWUSI, CFR, received the royal fathers and held brief consultations with them before the delegation proceeded to the seat of power.

Because of the strict security architecture around Aso Rock Presidential Villa, the Federal Government had issued official access tags to OONIRISA, to be given to each traditional ruler so they could pass through the several security checkpoints into the Presidential Villa without delay( check their necks in the pictures for the tag).

With the royal fathers properly accredited, OONIRISA coordinated and led the delegation of monarchs from the Transcorp Hilton to the Presidential Villa, ensuring that the entire Traditional Rulers Council moved together as one body for the engagement with the Federal Government.

However, an interesting moment occurred after the monarchs had successfully passed the security layers and entered the banquet hall inside the Villa. As seen in the photographs, the ALAAFIN and the OLUWO quietly removed their access tags, a move that made it appear as though they had been invited separately and not as part of the National Traditional Rulers Council delegation led by OONIRISA.

Nevertheless, the royal fathers had already entered the Villa through the unified arrangement facilitated by OONIRISA, who once again played a central coordinating role in bringing together the traditional institution for dialogue with the Federal Government.

The images capture a rare behind-the-scenes moment of how Nigeria’s traditional leadership navigates state protocol, security procedures, and royal dynamics at the highest level of national engagement.