The Fusengbuwa Ruling House of Ijebu land has come hard on popular Fuji musician Wasiu Ayinde (KWAM1) over his protest letter to Governor Dapo Abiodun, wherein he’d claimed he was being deliberately left out of the process to choose the next Awujale of Ijebu land.
In a letter dated January 8, 2026, written by his lawyer Dr Wahab Shittu (SAN), the musician said the Fusengbuwa Ruling House, which is next in line to produce the monarch, had given directives not recognised by the Chieftaincy Declaration and the Obas and Chiefs Law of Ogun State, allegedly to prevent him from contesting.
On Sunday, the Vice Chairman of the Fusengbuwa Ruling House, Prof Fassy Yusuf, rejected the claims and called the protest letter “arrant nonsense,” saying it would not affect the selection process.
“It is a misguided letter. Either Wahab Shittu is being misled, or Wasiu Ayinde is being misled. It is arrant nonsense,” Yusuf said in a phone interview with Punch.
“The letter was sent to the government, so they will respond as needed. The concern about screening does not make sense. We have over 20,000 members in the ruling house. How does he expect us to handle such a large group? What is being discussed is not logical,” he added.
Yusuf also said the ruling house had set Monday as the date for the nomination meeting for those interested in the vacant stool.
The process to select the new Awujale has drawn a lot of attention, with more than 60 people reportedly interested. Ayinde has publicly said he wants to contest.
However, the Fusengbuwa family insists that the Fuji musician is not a member of the ruling house and so is not qualified to take part in the process.
Earlier, Ayinde went to the Ogun State High Court in Ijebu-Ode, asking for an interim order to stop the governor and six others from continuing with the selection. The court dismissed his request as lacking merit, and his lawyer later withdrew the case without giving a reason.
After the state government got involved, the ruling house paused the process and then started it again.
In a new letter to the governor, Ayinde said the Ijebu-Ode Local Government, in a letter dated January 6, 2026, and signed by its Secretary Oke Adebanjo, had approved the start of the selection process.
He was surprised that while family members were getting ready for a meeting, Prince Adeleye Lateef Ademuyiwa, the ruling house’s Public Relations Officer, sent out a notice telling candidates to get nomination forms and appear before a screening committee led by Prince Alhaji Mitiu Adenuga.
The letter said the nomination exercise was set for Monday, January 12, 2026, but that nominations would be handled by delegates chosen at a meeting on January 10, 2026.
Ayinde’s lawyer argued that these directives broke existing laws and were meant to exclude his client.
“It is a matter of deep concern to our client that all the illegal directives, unknown to the Chieftaincy Declaration, the Obas and Chiefs Law, and the letter of the Secretary of Ijebu-Ode Local Government, were included in the family’s letter,” Shittu said.
“We wish to emphasise that all members of the ruling house are entitled to attend this important meeting to nominate candidates of their choice. A group of people cannot usurp these rights. The directive providing for screening and nomination by delegates is inconsistent with the spirit and letter of the law,” he added.
The lawyer warned that any move to exclude KWAM1 would be challenged and called on the governor to step in to make sure the process is fair and follows due process.The Awujale stool became vacant in July last year after Oba Sikiru Adetona died at age 91, ending his 65-year reign.
With additional report from TNG
