Court sacks Lagos traditional ruler
The Lagos State High Court has nullified the installation and coronation of Ibrahim Adebowale Saliu as the Onise of Ise Kingdom in the Lekki Local Council Development Area of Epe Local Government Area, Lagos State.
Justice Yetunde Adesola Adesanya of the Lagos State High Court, Igbosere, also directed the Lagos State Government to withdraw the appointment letter, staff of office and official recognition issued to Saliu following his installation on August 21, 2026.
The ruling was delivered on Friday, September 11, 2026, following an application filed by Alhaji Adeniyi Atere and Mrs Idowu Adebisi Lana in Suit No. LD/0022PRA/2026.
The applicants had asked the court to intervene over the process that produced Saliu as the Oba-elect and his subsequent appointment and installation as the Onise of Ise.
The court ordered Saliu to return the appointment letter, staff of office and other official materials obtained in connection with the disputed installation.
He was also directed to stop presenting himself as the Onise of Ise until the substantive case before the court is heard and determined.
The dispute followed an earlier interim order issued by Justice S. I. Sonaike on August 13, 2026.
That order stopped the Lagos State Government and other listed defendants from taking steps to appoint Saliu as the Onise of Ise based on a March 30, 2026 letter forwarding his name as the Oba-elect.
The earlier order was made against the background of claims that the selection process did not comply with the Obas and Chiefs of Lagos State Law, 2015, and the Registered Declaration governing the selection of the Onise of Ise.
The interim injunction was initially expected to remain in force for seven days, with August 20 fixed for the parties to report compliance and for further proceedings.
The court found that the relevant respondents had been served with the order. It also noted that the respondents were aware of the case because some of them had filed a motion dated August 18 seeking to have the earlier injunction discharged or set aside.
Despite the pending proceedings, the disputed installation took place at the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Rural Development in Alausa, Ikeja, on August 21.
The applicants told the court that the state government proceeded with the ceremony despite the existing court order. Evidence presented before the court included photographs from the installation and coronation.
After considering the affidavits, documents and submissions from the parties, Justice Adesanya found that the earlier court order had been breached.
The judge also considered whether the court could order the reversal of an act that had already taken place. The court held that although injunctions are generally used to prevent an action from occurring, a mandatory injunction can be issued in exceptional circumstances to undo an act already carried out.
The court relied on previous judicial decisions, including cases involving the Central Bank of Nigeria and a chieftaincy dispute in which the courts had considered the use of mandatory injunctions to restore the position that existed before a disputed action.
In reaching its decision, the court found that the circumstances of the Onise of Ise dispute justified the use of such an order because the installation was carried out despite the earlier injunction.
The court consequently directed the Lagos State Governor, Attorney-General, Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Rural Development and the ministry to withdraw the appointment letter, staff of office and recognition granted to Saliu.
Saliu was separately ordered to surrender the documents and materials connected with his appointment and to stop presenting himself as the traditional ruler of Ise.
The court further set aside and nullified the installation and coronation conducted on August 21.
However, the judge clarified that the latest orders do not amount to a final decision on who is legally entitled to occupy the Onise of Ise stool.
The orders will remain in place pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit, which will address the wider dispute over the selection and appointment of the traditional ruler.
The defendants in the case include the Lagos State Governor, Attorney-General, the Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Rural Development, the ministry, Epe Local Government Area, Lekki LCDA and individuals involved in the selection process, while Saliu is listed as the 11th defendant.
