- Says nothing like united Southern Traditional Rulers Council
- Council remains strong and united. Ooni of Ife counters
By Chesa Chesa
A traditional ruler from the South-East, Dr. Lawrence Agubuzu, Eze Ogbunechendo of Ezema Olo Kingdom, Enugu State on Tuesday stunned an audience in the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja when he told President Bola Tinubu to immediately release imprisoned leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, or return him to Kenya where he was seized from.
Eze Agubuzu spoke, amidst applause, during the 2026 National Traditional and Religious Leaders Summit on Health, held at the State House, Abuja, with President Tinubu seated there as Special Guest of Honour.
He stressed that the continued incarceration of Kanu has been fuelling agitation among the youth in the region, and a major relief is to free the secessionist leader, who was jailed for life by a court last year.
Listed as one of the traditional rulers to make remarks of commitment during the second segment of the event, Eze Agubuzu told President Tinubu: “I must tell you, Mr. President, that personally, I don’t feel very happy because you were not here in the morning.
“There were several speeches, and we listened carefully. I listened to the opening address by His Imperial Majesty, (Ooni of Ife) and he was gingering all of us to work as a family, to work as a team, and to see Nigeria as one.
“This is good. But when you look at it, this same Imperial Majesty is arranging to confer a very high honor on Sunday Igboho (a Yoruba separatist leader) who, in my own part of Nigeria and the Southeast, we see as a counterpart of Nnamdi Kanu.
“Oh, my brother, fellow royal father, the Imperial Majesty does not seem to understand the pain in my heart when Nnamdi Kanu is in Sokoto. So sad—the ball stops in your court. Bring this man out. If we don’t want him in Nigeria, return him to Kenya or London, where they took him from.
“You see, some of us here are being asked to go and work, but the young people in the Southeast are so agitated they can even beat us. They see us as sellouts. We come to Abuja—they may think we’ve come to collect money and then keep quiet. So sad. Please do something about this. We cannot make progress in this country if we don’t tell ourselves the truth. There’s no way.”
Eze Azubugu hinted at disunity among Southern Nigeria tradtional rulers, saying: “They were talking about the Southern Traditional Rulers Committee on Health, and the eminent Professor Pate was saying that this will become an annual event—what we are doing today, if I heard him correctly.
“The truth of the matter is that there is nothing like a Southern Traditional Rulers Council. If you come here and give money to people on that basis, it is not correct. The South is not the North. We have our system. We need unity in diversity.
“So, if you want to deal with us, deal with us in the Southeast. If you have resources for us, give it to us. Don’t give it to people who come and say they represent a traditional rulers council.
“Democracy is representative government, and anybody who goes to present himself without his people is not democratic or traditional. So, get it right. We will do our best. Mr. President, you all—please listen to our cries. All of us.”
Addressing the press later, Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitam Ogunwusi, countered Eze Aguzubu’s position on the traditional rulers council, saying that the council remain formidable and its membership is optional.
“The Southern Traditional Rulers Council is very optional. You don’t need to join us if you don’t want to, but it is a force—a formidable force—among traditional institutions for us to come together. We are all reputable in our domains. You can see all of us because all of us made speeches—there was nothing like that.
“We don’t agree to that, but our president is there. We don’t want any impression that there’s division. We don’t want to take out the Southeast. We have Eze here—he is one of our very prominent traditional rulers in the Southeast. We have a lot of Southeast traditional rulers working together for the betterment of the country.
“So, for us, it is something key to let the whole world know that if you don’t want to be part of us, you can opt yourself out.”
Speaking in similar vein, Dr. Eberechukwu Kanu Oji Eberechuckwu (Eze Aro IX), the traditional ruler of Arochukwu Kingdom in Abia State, who identified himself as the Publicity Secretary of the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council, said: “The Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council is a movement—a journey—comprising members from across the entire southern part of Nigeria. He (Ooni) is our chairman. We have the co-chair here from the Southeast. We have eminent traditional rulers from across the southern parts of Nigeria.
“We have come together to advance the cause of the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council. So, let us put it on record: The President was part of the inauguration of the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council. It happened in Oyo, and we had representatives from both the press, the government, and stakeholders at that inauguration.
Since that inauguration, the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council has been active.
“We have had our AGM, which took place in Ogun State. We have undertaken several activities together.
So, please, for the purposes of clearing any doubts, the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council exists. The Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council is united, with traditional rulers and royal fathers from across the entire southern Nigeria—all represented here.”
Meanwhile, the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, had earlier delivered the keynote address, urging traditional and religious leaders to help drive the National Community Food Bank Programme, which she said would be rolled out nationwide in April. She flagged off the programme.
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, described Tuesday’s summit as the first comprehensive engagement of traditional and religious leaders since the health sector reforms began over two years ago.
The compact signing ceremony, subtitled “Crowning the Compact,” was anchored on three objectives. They include: building awareness of the President’s health reform vision among community leaders, strengthening their role in promoting transparency and accountability in healthcare delivery, and securing their strategic partnership for locally grounded implementation of the reforms.
Statements of commitment were delivered by traditional and religious leaders including the Shehu of Borno, the Olowo of Owo, the Emir of Bade, the CAN President, the Deputy President General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, and Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto.
