The Emir of Ilorin and Chairman of the Kwara State Traditional Rulers Council, Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, has mourned the death of the Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin, who passed away on Monday, 7 July 2025, at the age of 90.
In a condolence message issued by his spokesman, Abdulazeez Arowona, the Emir described the monarch’s passing as “the will of Almighty Allah.”
READ ALSO: Ibadan Mourns As Olubadan Dies One Year After Coronation
He noted that Oba Olakulehin’s one-year reign was peaceful and valuable in sustaining the cultural heritage and traditions of Ibadan and Oyo State.
Sulu-Gambari extended his condolences to the immediate and extended family of the monarch, the Olubadan-in-Council, the Oyo State Council of Traditional Rulers, the Government and people of Oyo State.
He prayed for the repose of the monarch’s soul and asked Almighty Allah to grant the people of Ibadan and humanity at large the fortitude to bear the loss.
Former Oyo Governor Ladoja Set to Become Next Olubadan
Nearly one year after the coronation of the late Oba Olakulehin, preparations are underway for the ascension of the next Olubadan—High Chief Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja, a former Governor of Oyo State.
Oba Olakulehin, crowned on 12 July 2024 at Mapo Hall, reigned for less than a year. The coronation was attended by President Bola Tinubu, governors, traditional rulers and other dignitaries. He received the staff of office from Governor Seyi Makinde, marking a new chapter at the newly commissioned Olubadan palace at Oke-Aremo.
The new palace replaces the tradition of past monarchs operating from private residences, making it the official royal home.
Ibadan’s rotational succession system alternates between the Balogun (military) and Otun (civil) lines. The late Oba Olakulehin came from the Balogun line, ascending the throne after 38 years. His successor is expected from the Otun line, where High Chief Ladoja currently ranks as the Otun Olubadan.
Who is Rasheed Ladoja?
Born on 24 September 1944 in the Gambari area of Ibadan, Ladoja is a politician, industrialist and senior traditional chief. He studied chemical engineering at the University of Liège, Belgium, between 1966 and 1972.
His political career began in 1993 when he was elected senator in Nigeria’s short-lived Third Republic. He later served as a director at Standard Trust Bank and was elected governor of Oyo State under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2003.
Ladoja was impeached in January 2006 following a political conflict with PDP chieftain Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu, but was reinstated by the courts in December that year.
After losing the PDP ticket in 2007, he contested governorship elections under the Action Congress, Accord Party, African Democratic Congress (ADC), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), before stepping away from politics to focus on traditional duties.
On 12 August 2024, he accepted the ceremonial beaded crown from the late Oba Olakulehin, reversing his earlier refusal during former Governor Abiola Ajimobi’s tenure.
With Ladoja’s emergence imminent, the city of Ibadan prepares for another historic transition in its royal leadership.
PIAK