Ahead of the 2027 general elections, South-West monarchs, on Wednesday, endorsed President Bola Tinubu for a second term.
The prominent traditional rulers across the region met at the palace of the Olubadan of Ibadanland, where Oba Rashidi Ladoja announced their position on Wednesday in Ibadan after a meeting.
The Alake of Egbaland, Oba Aremu Gbadebo, who read the communiqué issued at the end of the meeting, urged monarchs in the region to mobilise their subjects in support of his re-election bid.
Conveying the monarchs’ position on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s bid to remain in office beyond 2027, they called on their colleagues across the South-West to encourage their subjects to support the President’s second-term ambition.
Beyond the political endorsement, the monarchs also expressed support for some of Tinubu’s key economic policies, particularly the removal of the petrol subsidy.
They described the subsidy removal as an important policy direction in the management of the country’s economy, signalling their backing for the administration’s approach despite the economic pressures associated with the reform.
On security, the monarchs supported the proposed establishment of state police, aligning themselves with growing calls for a decentralised policing structure to address security challenges across Nigeria.
They argued, in effect, for a policing system that could bring security operations closer to communities and improve responses to local security threats.
The meeting brought together several prominent traditional rulers from across the South-West, including the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi; the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja; and the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Aremu Gbadebo, among others.
The endorsement adds the voice of the region’s traditional institutions to the political conversation surrounding the 2027 presidential election, with the monarchs urging their colleagues to use their influence within their respective communities to support Tinubu’s return.