A Lagos State High Court has ordered all parties involved in the dispute over the Oloja of Lagos traditional stool to maintain the existing status quo pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Drivetvnews gathered that Justice Olalekan Oresanya issued the directive after dismissing a preliminary objection filed by Prince Babajide Kosoko, which challenged the court’s jurisdiction to hear the matter. The objection was supported by the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu.
The suit was instituted by the Head of the Akinsanya Olojo Ruling House, Prince Surajudeen Olojo-Kosoko; the ruling house’s General Secretary, Prince Theophilus Olojo-Kosoko; and Prince Abiola Kosoko, representing themselves and the Akinsanya Olojo-Kosoko Ruling House.
Other defendants in the case include Oba Rilwan Akiolu, the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, the Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Rural Development, the Executive Chairman of Lagos Island Local Government, Prince Babajide Kosoko, Mr. Muritala Kosoko, and Mr. Tunji Kosoko.
The claimants, through their counsel, Olusegun Fabunmi (SAN), argued that Prince Abiola Kosoko was duly nominated as the ruling house’s candidate for the Oloja stool and challenged attempts to replace him with another contender.
Counsel for Prince Babajide Kosoko, Dayo Oshodi (SAN), maintained that the dispute concerned the nomination, selection, and installation of a traditional ruler, matters governed by customary law and the Lagos State Obas and Chiefs Law, and therefore fell outside the court’s jurisdiction.
In response, the claimants insisted that the nomination process had already been concluded in 2020 with Prince Abiola Kosoko emerging as the recognised candidate. They alleged that following a land-related disagreement, some defendants disregarded the earlier nomination and began processing other candidates for the stool.
Delivering his ruling, Justice Oresanya held that the claimants had established a reasonable cause of action that required a full trial. He explained that the issues raised could not be resolved at the interlocutory stage, stressing that where evidence is needed to determine a preliminary objection, the matter should proceed to substantive hearing.
The judge consequently dismissed the jurisdictional objection.
Although the court declined the claimants’ request for an interlocutory injunction restraining the defendants from nominating or installing another Oloja of Lagos, Justice Oresanya ruled that granting such relief would amount to deciding key issues before trial.
Instead, the court directed all parties to preserve the situation that existed before the events leading to the disputed nomination of the fifth and sixth defendants.
The court further affirmed that Prince Abiola Olojo-Kosoko remains the Oloja-elect pending the final determination of the suit and ordered that the case be given accelerated hearing.
The matter was adjourned until October 6, 2026, for the hearing of the substantive suit.
