Prince Abiola Olojo-Kosoko earned a Higher National Diploma in Wildlife Planning and Tourism Master Plan Designing from Lagos State Polytechnic. As a passionate promoter of the history and cultural heritage of Lagos’s indigenous people, he serves as Chief Conservationist and curator of Origin Gardens and Zoo. His commitment to tourism and wildlife protection has steered much of his work in environmental conservation. For more than two decades, he has advocated personal responsibility in the fight against climate change. To further this mission, he founded the Museum for Climate Change, a dynamic project that raises awareness of global warming’s effects on everyday lives. But in this interview, he speaks about the Kosoko lineage, and the next Oloja of Lagos.
Sir, how exactly do we address you, given the fact that there’s an Oloja-elect already?
To the best of my knowledge and to the King Kosoko Royal Family / Oloja of Lagos Chieftaincy Family, there is only one Oloja-elect which is my humble self, Prince Abiola Olojo-Kosoko. It would interest you to know that the selection of who occupies the Oloja of Lagos stool is regulated by Obas and Chiefs of Lagos State Law Lagos. This law recognises nine ruling houses in the Kosoko Royal Family. I am from the Akinsanya Olojo Ruling House, one of the nine accredited ruling houses, and next in succession for the Oloja of Lagos Chieftaincy according to the Obas and Chiefs of Lagos State Law 1981 regulating the selection of the Oloja of Lagos Chieftaincy.
This is not to deny the fact that we woke up to hear about a palace coup initiated by five persons. Of the five persons, one is the head of the Meshimo Ruling House and the Deputy Olori Ebi of the Kosoko Royal Family. Prince Jide Kosoko is the head of the Oteniya Ruling House, the self-proclaimed Oloja-elect.
However, as of today, the Akinsanya Olojo ruling house has not been officially informed of the reason, because it is not the general consensus of the kingmakers who were saddled with the responsibility of candidate ratification. Thus, I am Prince Abiola Olojo-Kosoko, the Oloja of Lagos-elect.
Can you give us a little background on the selection process?
The Registered Declaration states that when there is a vacancy in the chieftaincy, a competent manager of the Olori Council of heads of family of the Kosoko descendant shall announce the name of the ruling house entitled according to Customary Law to provide candidates to fill that vacancy.
Asides from being from one of the accredited nine Ruling Houses who are direct descendants of King Kosoko, to emerge as an Oloja, suitable candidates have to present their plans and vision for the role. This is something like a manifesto where a candidate has to convince the Kingmakers about the values he intends to bring to the family as the Oloja.
The process that gave birth to my emergence as the Oloja-elect of Lagos commenced sequel to the passing of the last Oloja of Lagos, Chief Adebola Idris Disu Ige in 2017. The head of the King Kosoko Royal family, Alhaja Chief Mutiat Ashabi Abimbola Alli-Balogun directed the general Secretary, Prince Sikiru Adeoye Kosoko to officially notify the Akinsanya Olojo ruling house about the vacancy in the stool of Oloja and the need for the ruling house to present a candidate as the next in line to produce the Oloja of Lagos.
At the level of Akinsanya Olojo Ruling House, there were seven Kingmakers involved in the selection process. 11 persons, including myself, signified interest and a date was fixed for the screening process to select an “Omo Oye” – ‘Omo Oye’ is the ruling house representative for the final selection. On the date fixed for the internal screening process with the Akinsanya Olojo, nine of the initial 11 opted out of the process. Two persons were left; myself, Abiola Olojo-Kosoko and Isah Aregbe went through with the process. At the end of the screening, I got four votes whilst Isah Aregbe got three votes from the seven Kingmakers in the Akinsanya Olojo Ruling House. My nomination was communicated to the head of the family, Alhaja Chief Mutiat Ashabi Abimbola Alli-Balogun.
Typical of processes such as this, some other family members were not satisfied with the outcome of the nomination. Unsatisfied family members registered their displeasure with the Olori-Ebi, Alhaja Chief Mutiat Ashabi Abimbola Alli-Balogun. As expected when there are internal issues with ruling houses, such issues are resolved by the larger house; the Oloja-in-Council Chieftaincy which consists of the head of the family of each of the nine ruling houses that makes up the King Kosoko Royal family. To avoid chaos and ensure fairness, the Olori-Ebi referred the selection process to the Oloja of Lagos Chieftaincy kingmakers in Council. The Council was headed by the Olori-Ebi, Alhaja Chief Mutiat Ashabi Abimbola Alli-Balogun herself decided to accommodate a rerun of the selection process. The selection process was supervised by family Legal Advisor, Barr. Tokunbo King.
All candidates picked up forms including Mr. Yakubu Abiola Aromashodu from the Odunsi Ruling house who picked a form out of turn. The Odunsi Ruling House is number nine on the registered declaration of 1983 thus, Mr Yakubu Abiola Aromashodu was disqualified by the Kingmakers on this basis. The Kingmakers in council insisted only members from the Akinsanya Olojo ruling as the next in succession to produce the next Oloja of Lagos are qualified candidates for the process. Eventually, three (3) persons; Prince Olusola Olojo-Kosoko, Alhaji Isa Adeyemi Aregbesola and myself participated in the screening.
Sequel to the individual screening and interview process with the Oloja of Lagos Chieftaincy kingmakers in Council, each contestant received the kingmaker’s verdict and all three contestants were called in to get the final verdict. The minutes of proceedings for this process were documented. I got the vote of the entire nine kingmakers who raised their hands to signify my appointment on the 12th day of December, 2020. At that venue, 31st of December, 2020 was selected as the date for my formal presentation to the general Kosoko Royal family.
On 31st of December, 2020 I was presented to the general family at the Elereko Palace, the Official residence of the Oloja of Lagos. As demanded by the custom and tradition, I was officially led into the Palace where my hand was raised again for every member of the King Kosoko family to pay homage in line with the Obas and Chiefs law. The activity of Friday, 31st December, 2021 and the subsequent letter of approval I got from the Olori-Ebi, Alhaja (Chief) Mutiat Abimbola Ashabi Alli-Balogun on 4th of January, 2021 closed the nomination and ratification process of the Oloja-elect of Lagos at the level of the Kosoko Royal Family. The next step, according to the Obas and Chiefs law of Lagos State, is for the Oba of Lagos by the virtue of being the Chairman of the Council of Obas and Chiefs of Lagos Island Local Government, is the consenting Officer of the decisions of the Kingmakers and the Olori-Ebi general of the King Kosoko Royal Family. Unfortunately, it has been five years, 28 days and still counting.
The self-acclaimed “selection process” of Prince Jide Kosoko, I cannot say because he is from the Oteniya Ruling House. The Oteniya Ruling House is number 8 on the Registered Declaration of 1983 list. My own branch, Akinsanya Olojo ruling house is the number 1 on the list and next in succession.
If you’re a key figure in the Kosoko family, then you must have been carried along in the selection process. Why are you now in court?
Yes, I am a key member of the Kosoko Royal Family; a very important one by the virtue of my ancestry and my emergence as the Oloja-elect of Lagos in December 2020. This is why I am saying there was no process that led to Prince Jide Kosoko ‘Oloja-elect’ claim but a coup pushed by greed and hatred for the new flourishing King Kosoko Royal Family by some highly placed individuals.
Yes, the Akinsanya Olojo Ruling House of the King Kosoko Royal Family is in Court as the next in succession for the Oloja of Lagos stool according to the registered declaration made under the Obas and Chiefs of Lagos State Law 1981 regulating the selection of the Oloja of Lagos Chieftaincy. We believe the court process will give the world all the answers. The Judiciary is a proven platform to uphold and keep important records, especially of names and actions as it is happening. We know legal pronouncement will serve as an antidote to curb divisive acts such as this in the future. The Lagos Obas and Chiefs law (as amended) states clearly the process and procedure which the Akinsanya Olojo ruling house followed and will continue to stand on.
Describe your relationship with the ‘Oloja-elect’, Jide Kosoko
Prince Jide kosoko is not the Oloja-elect until the court says so. Prince Babajide Kosoko is currently the Head of the Oteniya ruling house, the Chairman of the King Kosoko Family, Central Working Committee, CWC, and the past Chairman of the Kosoko Reconciliation Committee.
If you have seen my presentation to the general family as the Oloja-elect, at Ereko Palace on 31st December, 2020, you would have seen Prince Jide Kosko and the four other persons who are key participants in what can be described as a Palace. See, Prince Jide Kosoko is an elder brother and someone whom before now, I would have described as a confidante, to tell you how much trust and respect I had for him.
This is someone I do not hide things from, and he knows I have been there for him and was ready to take bullets for him if the need arose. But I have learnt my lessons.
You have been promoting some cultural activities. What’s their significance, and how far have you taken them?
As a promoter of culture and preserver of heritage, the manifesto I presented as an aspirant to the stool of the Oloja of Lagos proposed the institutionalization process of many activities to burnish the King Kosoko Royal Family and the Oloja Chieftaincy family brand and image. Part of the many activities I have undertaken includes the rebranding of the King Kosoko Royal Family, by introducing logos that depict who we are and what Oloja stands for.
From cultural, to traditional, to structural, family ties, educational and other significant changes, I have deployed my personal finances and rallied round my friends and well wishers to implement initiatives contained in my manifesto. I still have copies of the same manifesto and I can make it available for everyone to see and compare if I have done anything out of the things I pledged.
Prior to the declaration of my emergence as the Oloja-elect by the Olori-Ebi general, Alhaja Chief Mutiat Abimbola Ashabi Alli-Balogun, the Ereko Palace was clustered. There was no space for even a single motorbike.The 160-year-old Palace was in a condition that was unbefitting for the Royalty the Place stands for. The place was about six feet below road level, with no restrooms. As promised in my manifesto, I have in the last five (5) years worked on the rehabilitation of the Ereko Palace. My team have worked assiduously in developing events around the actions of King Kosoko to create a better relationship with the direct descendants of King Kosoko and allies across board.
The King Kosoko Royal Family is unique in how her direct descendants have established roots across Lagos, Benin Republic, and Ghana. To showcase Lagos’s broader cultural heritage through the lens of Kosoko family’s unique journey, I established the King Kosoko Memorial Museum as a promoter of the annual King Kosoko Memorial Lecture. The King Kosoko Memorial Museum is a public-minded project rooted in family pride and cultural stewardship as we transform the private memories of Kosoko Family into public gifts celebrating our ancestors’ roles in Lagos’s history.The Museum name recalls the founders who built the family’s reputation in commerce, scholarship and civic life.
Just as our grandparents passed on wisdom orally, the King Kosoko Memorial Museum is creating a living archive that future members of the King Kosoko family can both draw on and contribute to honouring ancestral legacy. We now preserve it visually and materially. More than preserving the King Kosoko family’s stories, artefacts and oral traditions in a dedicated space and format.
The goal of Institutionalizing King Kosoko’s memory is to educate younger generations both within and outside the family about our roots, values and achievements. The King Kosoko Museum project has been a part of numerous exhibitions and has gotten acknowledgement from the government at the state level and beyond. We also have non-government awards. The museum, in particular, has attracted a lot of diplomats and brought about development that is restoring the family name on the frontlines where it belongs. I suspect these feats have been making some people uncomfortable.
Adopting the King Kosoko name for the bulk of the work I have embarked on since I emerged as the Oloja-elect in 2020 has been an act of homage to our ancestors as I continue to connect the old and the young.
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