Alhaji Abdulkadir Alabi Adebara, the Oba of Jebba in Kwara State, has been embroiled in a 21-year struggle to receive his rightful salary from the state government. Installed in 2003, he faced challenges shortly after his ascension, including a change in government and a legal battle over his title. Despite a court ruling in 2014 affirming his status as a third-class traditional ruler, he has yet to receive payment for his service since May 2003.
Oba Adebara’s ordeal includes imprisonment and legal battles that spanned several years. Despite his exoneration by the courts, the government has not fulfilled its obligation to pay his salary. He believes that certain traditional rulers are obstructing his efforts to receive payment, alleging a deliberate attempt to withhold his earnings.
In his appeal to the government, Oba Adebara seeks justice and recognition for his role as the Oba of Jebba. He calls for the full implementation of the court judgment, upgrading of his stool to first-class status, and the establishment of a separate traditional council for the Moro Local Government Area, where Jebba is located.
Despite numerous appeals and legal victories, Oba Adebara’s struggle continues, highlighting broader issues of governance and traditional authority in Kwara State.
In an interview, he alleged that some monarch are behind the reason his salaries aren’t being paid.
“I have strong reasons to believe that one or two traditional rulers are behind these things; they are out to frustrate the payment of the accumulated salaries and allowances”
“They had vowed that as long as they lived, I would not earn any salary. That perhaps is their second worst option having failed woefully to prevent me from ascending the throne of the Oba of Jebba” he said.
IMAGE: Voicing Gong
