The deposed Apetumodu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Joseph Oloyede, has dragged Governor Ademola Adeleke and other state officials before a court, seeking to halt the appointment of a new traditional ruler pending the resolution of his legal challenge against his removal.
Oloyede, a dual citizen of Nigeria and the United States, was convicted in August 2025 and sentenced to 56 months in prison over a $4.2 million COVID-19 relief fund fraud in the United States.
Following the conviction, Adeleke removed the monarch after the Osun State Government received a Certified True Copy of the US court judgment in May.
The government subsequently declared the Apetumodu stool vacant and announced plans to commence the process of selecting a new traditional ruler.
However, Oloyede has challenged his removal and is seeking judicial intervention to prevent the state from installing another monarch.
According to Punch, the former monarch filed a suit before the Osun State High Court sitting in Ile-Ife, asking the court to restrain Adeleke and other defendants from taking steps to fill the traditional stool until the substantive case is determined.
The suit, numbered HIF/50/2026, lists Oloyede as the second claimant alongside three other members of the Latimogun Royal Family of the Aribile Ruling House in Ipetumodu.
The other claimants are Oyewusi Adewusi, Isaac Adewuni and Abiodun Oyetoro, who are princes representing other members of the royal family.
The defendants include Governor Adeleke; the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Oluwole Jimi-Bada; the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Dosu Babatunde; Afolabi Adedeji; the Asalu of Ipetumodu and head of the kingmakers, Adesoye Babalola; the Malefon of Ipetumodu; and Ife North Local Government.
Also Read: Osun monarch gets the boot after US imprisonment
In an application dated 16 September 2026, Oloyede sought an interlocutory injunction restraining the defendants, their agents and representatives from filling the Apetumodu stool or appointing another person in his stead until the substantive suit is resolved.
He maintained that the state government failed to formally notify him of any alleged misconduct before initiating proceedings that led to his removal.
The application referenced a deposition order dated 7 May, reportedly signed by Adeleke and published in The Guardian newspaper on 11 May.
Oloyede alleged that neither the governor nor the relevant state officials informed him of any wrongdoing before the purported deposition.
The motion partly read: “There was no time the 2nd claimant/applicant (Mr Oloyede) was informed by the 1st-3rd defendants of any wrongdoing before the issuance of the publication contained in the said Guardian Newspaper and the purported instrument or order of deposition.”
The application is intended to preserve the traditional stool pending the court’s determination of the substantive dispute.
Court adjourns proceedings
Meanwhile, proceedings in the matter were stalled on Monday following disagreement over the service of hearing notices on the parties.
Only the claimants’ counsel, O. Ogbewe, and the fifth defendant’s lawyer, Soji Oyetayo, were present in court.
Ogbewe informed the court that the defendants had been served with the relevant court processes and requested an adjournment to enable the claimants to serve all the defendants.
In his ruling, the presiding judge, Dapo Adeniji, adjourned the case until 21 January 2027 and ordered that fresh hearing notices be issued and served on the defendants.
When contacted by PREMIUM TIMES, the Osun State Governor’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, said he had forwarded the request for comments to the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and promised to relay the response to the reporter.
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