The 18th Oluoke of Okeigbo Kingdom, Ondo State, Oba Akintoye Adeoye, speaks with NAOMI CHIMA about his journey from prince to traditional ruler, how his careers in law and ministry prepared him for kingship, his Christian faith and traditional responsibilities, and his plans for even development
Tell us about growing up in the Aare Kugbaigbe Ruling House as a prince.
I am from the Aare Kugbaigbe Ruling House of Okeigbo in Ondo State. I was born to Prince Samuel and Abigail Adeoye.
Aare Kugbaigbe was one of the co-founders of Okeigbo. He was a warrior who came from Ehindi in Ile-Ife and became the first ruler of Okeigbo Kingdom.
His first son, Adegbite, and his half-brother, Adepegba, subsequently reigned as kings after him.
Adegbite was the father of Adekanye, who gave birth to Adeoye, the father of Akintoye. I am the fourth person from the Aare Kugbaigbe Ruling House to ascend the throne and the second Adegbite to sit on the throne of Okeigbo Kingdom.
Before ascending the throne, I was simply a prince. I grew up with my parents in a very humble environment. I attended primary schools in Okeigbo and Okitipupa. I later attended Methodist High School, Okitipupa, and spent about nine months at Oloroke Grammar School, Okeigbo.
My upbringing taught me humility, hard work and aspiration. Those qualities have remained with me throughout my life.
What story about Okeigbo did your parents tell you that you now share with your children?
Unfortunately, my parents did not deliberately teach us much about the history of our community or lineage. However, our names reflected our royal heritage, while our oríkì (Yoruba praise poetry) also captured our roots, history and exploits.
What my parents demonstrated very strongly was an extraordinary love for Okeigbo. That love was almost like a creed in our home. Without anyone having to formally teach it to me, I absorbed that deep attachment to Okeigbo.
My parents concentrated mainly on raising children who were properly brought up, culturally grounded, hardworking and dependable. We are enjoying the benefits of that upbringing today, and we have adopted many of the same principles in raising our own children.
With the benefit of experience, however, I now understand that children must also be deliberately taught about their history, roots and lineage. Unlike me when I was growing up, my children are consciously aware of their heritage and are addressed as prince and princess.
Among all the titles attached to your name, which one do you secretly enjoy hearing the most when your wife calls you at home?
Every one of those titles came at a price and followed a journey. As a lawyer, I paid the price through years of study and many nights of hard work. My years at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, where I obtained my first and second degrees, as well as my time at the Nigerian Law School, remain very memorable.
I was ordained a pastor in 1997 under the spirit-filled and dynamic ministry of Archbishop Sam Amaga. I also obtained a bachelor’s degree in theology from Life Theological Seminary of the Foursquare Gospel Church.
Then, on November 4, 2025, Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa presented me with the Staff of Office as the Oluoke of Okeigbo Kingdom.
Becoming Oluoke is an ancestral and genealogical privilege, but ancestry and genealogy alone could never have qualified me. Education, character, competence and other qualities were also necessary. The newest title is Kabiyesi, and at this stage of my life, I must confess that I enjoy it. My wife has equally become the Olori. When I call her “Olori”, she responds, “Kabiyesi”.
How did your wife and children react when you told them you wanted to contest for the Oluoke stool?
When I informed my wife, she was neither particularly excited nor afraid. Interestingly, about five years before the stool became vacant, she had already received what I would describe as a divine inclination that something like this could happen. We did not discuss it extensively because, at the time, becoming king was not something I was considering.
When the stool eventually became vacant, I was not among the first five people who expressed interest. However, when I eventually joined the race, my wife and children gave me their wholehearted support.
What traditional rites did you undergo before your emergence, and did any conflict with your Christian beliefs?
I underwent traditional rites during the coronation process. Interestingly, African Traditional Religion was one of the subjects I studied during my Higher School Certificate programme and later during my theological education. My understanding of African Traditional Religion helped me greatly in approaching the traditional rites with knowledge and perspective.
Generally speaking, many aspects of African tradition have been demonised without sufficient understanding of what they actually represent.
Knowledge makes a major difference. When you understand the origins, meanings and purposes of certain practices, you are better positioned to make informed judgments about them.
You have been a lawyer, a Foursquare pastor and now an Oba. How did your experience in the courtroom and the pulpit prepare you for the palace?
I say this with gratitude to God: my career as a lawyer and my calling as a pastor prepared me tremendously for the administration of the palace.
The legal profession trained me in reasoning, justice, procedure, evidence and the disciplined consideration of competing positions. Ministry taught me about people, conscience, compassion, leadership and responsibility.
Those experiences have helped me greatly in administering the palace with a good conscience, a sound understanding of justice and strong administrative capacity.
The chiefs and members of the community have given me positive feedback about my performance. Our chiefs look forward to palace meetings, and I consider that a very positive sign.
There is no perfect wisdom except the wisdom that comes from above. My present assignment is to serve as the head and father of Okeigbo Kingdom as the Oluoke. I came into this responsibility with experience, but the reality is that there is no formal school where someone is trained to become a king. You become a king, and then you must grow into the responsibility of kingship.
When I ascended the throne, I met high chiefs, senior chiefs and other chiefs who had been part of the palace structure long before my arrival. Most of them are respectful; they understand boundaries, and they genuinely love and support me. The feeling is mutual.
I consult them regularly. I seek their counsel, ask questions and listen to their perspectives. Ultimately, however, responsibility for decisions rests with me.
So far, I have enjoyed a very cordial relationship with my chiefs. We do not have rancour or unnecessary disputes, and I value that greatly.
Take us through the process of your emergence as Oba
The path to a traditional throne is often contested. Some communities are fortunate enough to emerge from such processes with a strong candidate, while others may have more complicated outcomes.
In my own case, I believe I met the relevant criteria in terms of character, education, capacity and competence.
Looking back, I believe God had been preparing me for the throne even when I had no personal ambition to become king.
The process was contentious, but ultimately, I emerged as the successful candidate. I believe leadership requires character, courage, capacity, conscience and competence. Those are qualities I have tried to bring to this office. In modern language, I would say Okeigbo made a good hire.
The contest was keen, with legal battles before your confirmation and presentation of the Staff of Office. What was your most trying moment during that period?
It is not unusual in Yorubaland for the path to a traditional throne to be difficult. There can be litigation, family disagreements, divisions within communities, competing interests among ruling houses and, sometimes, political or governmental interests.
For me, the most trying day was the day I was selected by the kingmakers.
The selection process itself was smooth. However, about an hour after I had been declared the winner, some thugs attacked the electoral returning officer, alleging that their preferred candidate had actually won.
It was a frightening situation. By the grace of God, the man survived. That day remains one of the most difficult memories of the entire process for me.
Did any traditional practices conflict with your Christian faith, and how have you reconciled the two as a Christian Oba?
The Bible teaches us to give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God. There may occasionally be situations in which traditional practices appear to conflict with aspects of Christian belief. However, my understanding of African Traditional Religion has helped me approach such matters with knowledge, judgment and perspective rather than fear.
Within our traditional worldview, prayers and libations ultimately recognise Eledumare, the Supreme Being. Different cultures and traditions may use different expressions in their attempts to understand the Supreme Being. The Greeks, for example, spoke of the “unknown God”, while Christianity reveals Him to us as God Almighty.
As king, however, I am not the father of Christians alone. I am the father of everyone in the kingdom.
Therefore, I have a responsibility to create an environment of tolerance, peaceful coexistence and mutual respect.
Every kingdom has its taboos. What are the taboos in Okeigbo Kingdom that an Oluoke must never break?
Many traditional taboos originally developed as rules intended to preserve the dignity and sanctity of the king’s office.
They are essentially prohibitions, restrictions and codes governing what a king should or should not do.
Some are very ancient, and in certain instances, knowledge of their original purpose may have been lost. Others may have originated from personal decisions made by previous occupants of the throne for particular reasons but later became accepted as tradition without subsequent occupants examining their original purpose.
Generally, there are expectations attached to my office. For instance, I am not expected to bow, kneel or prostrate before another human being. I should ordinarily not eat or drink openly in public, and my head is expected to remain covered. A king must also be careful about making pronouncements because he should not casually reverse his own orders. These customs vary considerably from one community to another.
Since your coronation, has there been a night when concern for Okeigbo kept you awake? What happened?
Yes. There was an incident around the boundary between Ondo town and Okeigbo in which some men kidnapped three people.
One of the victims, who was from Okeigbo, unfortunately died from the shock of the experience. The suspects were eventually apprehended and handed over to the police.
It was deeply traumatic for me. I could not sleep. When you become king, the suffering of your people becomes very personal. It was a very sad experience.
You have declared this era “The New Jerusalem”. What specific changes do you hope to bring to Okeigbo?
One of my priorities is what I call mind engineering, particularly among our young people.
We are working with primary and secondary schools to improve educational standards and provide scholarships for bright students from indigent backgrounds.
We are also working with the management of the Ondo State Technical College, Okeigbo, to improve the institution’s functionality and relevance. Fifty scholarships have already been provided for Okeigbo indigenes attending the school during this academic session.
We are engaging the Ministry of Health to improve the performance and patronage of the Okeigbo Health Centre. At present, we give mothers who deliver their babies at the health centre N30,000 each. Apart from providing assistance to the families, the initiative is intended to encourage greater use of the facility.
Agriculture is another major area. I am working with the Ministry of Agriculture and other stakeholders to explore ways of increasing agricultural productivity and creating greater economic value from agriculture.
Okeigbo is indeed LUCKY.
The Governor of Ondo State, Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, has been supportive of our community, and there are other interventions and plans that I may not be able to catalogue here. The governor is a friend of Okeigbo, and he will always be welcome in our community, whether he is in office or out of office. Okeigbo is lucky.
You began your coronation activities with a football competition at Okeigbo Grammar School. Why? And what are your plans for addressing youth unemployment and attracting investment to Okeigbo?
We hear Obas do not dance anyhow in public. Which of your favourite songs will you dance to, or maintain royal composure when the music comes on?
My default position is simple: do not dance anyhow in public.
But that does not mean an Oba cannot dance in public. It is a question of dignity and decorum.
You cannot overdo it, and it should not happen at every opportunity. Once in a while, in the appropriate setting, there is nothing wrong with it.
My favourite music remains Okeigbo traditional drumming, particularly when accompanied by the traditional lyrics and chants of our people.
If you had a day free from royal duties, legal matters and sermons, where would we find you simply being Felix in Okeigbo?
You would probably find me in one of our primary or secondary schools.
I would be teaching. I enjoy imparting knowledge, particularly to young people. If I had a completely free day and could choose what to do, spending time teaching children would be very fulfilling.
Of all the cultural festivals, such as Oro, Egungun and Ogun, which is your personal favourite, and why?
I am the supreme traditional head of all the festivals in Okeigbo Kingdom, so I cannot publicly declare a favourite. A father should not openly demonstrate greater affection for one child than for the others.
Every festival represents part of the history, culture and identity of our people. My responsibility as Oluoke is to respect that heritage while remaining a father to all.
What is your favourite food?
When it comes to food, I am catholic. I enjoy most dishes! Give me amala, gbegiri and ewedu, particularly in the afternoon, and I will relish them. Pounded yam and okra soup? Morning, afternoon or evening, you can trust me with them.