Dokubo-Asari visits Ooni, invites monarch to coronation rites

Amanyanabo of Elem Kalabari, Alhaji Mujahid Abubakr Dokubo-Asari, has visited the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, to strengthen cultural, historical, and economic ties between the Kalabari Kingdom and Ile-Ife.

Dokubo-Asari, also known as Da Amakiri Tubo, used the visit to extend a personal invitation to the Ooni and his traditional council to attend the final rites of his coronation, known as Se Diye, scheduled for December 19, 2026, in Buguma, Rivers.

Speaking at the Ooni’s palace, the Kalabari monarch said the invitation was motivated by the cordial relationship between the two traditional institutions.

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“It is based on the cordial relationship that we have built that I am here today to invite His Imperial Majesty and his council to my Se Diye, the final rites of coronation on December 19, 2026, in Buguma,” he said.

Oba Ogunwusi commended Dokubo-Asari for the wisdom with which he had handled his affairs since ascending the throne of Elem Kalabari. He also appreciated the monarch’s relationship with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

A statement from the Amanyanabo’s media office described the visit as an engagement between two royal institutions with deep ancestral histories and longstanding indigenous traditions.

It said the visit to Ile-Ife was the third royal engagement in a deliberate outreach to traditional institutions across the country. Earlier in the week, Dokubo-Asari had visited the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, and the Etsu Nupe in Bida, Niger State.

According to the statement, the visits were aimed at strengthening relationships between Elem Kalabari and traditional institutions in the North-West, North-Central and South-West, using the forthcoming coronation rites as an opportunity to promote dialogue and cooperation beyond the Niger Delta.

The Amanyanabo was accompanied to Ile-Ife by Prince Tonye T.J.T. Princewill, Paramount Head of the Queen Elebabene Da Ogo Group of Houses and Satellite Communities of the Kalabari Kingdom; Hajia Ramat Dokubo-Asari; Hajia Halima Dokubo-Asari; and Mallam Mustapha Wakama, among others.