Atiba University Oyo founder advocates responsible scholarship

*Urges greater respect for traditional institutions

Obaloluwa Darasimi

The Founder and President of Atiba University Oyo (AUO), James Adesokan Ojebode, has called on scholars, public intellectuals, and opinion leaders to uphold the enduring values of responsible scholarship by ensuring that academic criticism is expressed with fairness, intellectual rigour, restraint, and due respect for Nigeria’s revered traditional institutions.

Ojebode made the call while reacting to recent public commentary concerning the Alaafin of Oyo, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Akeem Abimbola Owoade, stating that although academic freedom remains a fundamental pillar of democratic society, it must always be exercised with a deep sense of responsibility, cultural awareness, and historical perspective.

According to him, scholarship fulfils its highest purpose when it enlightens, promotes understanding, enriches public discourse, and strengthens institutions, rather than generating needless controversy or diminishing the dignity of time-honoured cultural establishments.

“The Alaafin is far more than an individual occupying a traditional office. The throne represents one of Africa’s oldest and most distinguished royal institutions, embodying the collective history, identity, civilisation, and cultural heritage of the Yoruba people. Consequently, public commentary concerning the institution should be guided by the decorum, sensitivity, and respect befitting its historical significance,” he stated.

The AUO founder observed that, by long-established Yoruba custom and protocol, the Alaafin is not regarded as an ordinary guest at public ceremonies. Rather, the monarch’s arrival traditionally signifies the commencement of proceedings, reflecting the institution’s symbolic importance rather than any personal privilege.

He noted that understanding the cultural philosophy underpinning traditional institutions is essential before subjecting them to public criticism, adding that indigenous protocols often possess historical meanings that cannot be adequately assessed through contemporary assumptions alone.

While acknowledging that constructive criticism remains indispensable to national development, Ojebode maintained that concerns regarding protocol, scheduling, or the conduct of public events should be communicated through respectful engagement and responsible dialogue rather than through language that could diminish the dignity of revered traditional institutions.

He further urged members of the academic community to recognise their unique responsibility as custodians of knowledge and culture, stressing that intellectual excellence is measured not merely by the forcefulness of criticism but by the wisdom, objectivity, civility, and evidence-based reasoning with which opinions are expressed.

Expressing concern over what he described as the gradual erosion of public reverence for traditional institutions in parts of Yorubaland, Ojebode observed that traditional rulers in many other parts of Nigeria continue to enjoy profound public respect despite differences of opinion.

He emphasised that while no institution should be insulated from legitimate scrutiny, such scrutiny must always preserve the honour and dignity of the ancient stools that have sustained the identity and continuity of the Yoruba civilisation for centuries.

Quoting the timeless Yoruba maxim, “Oba kì í dé pẹ́; nígbà tí Oba bá dé, àsìkò ni ó dé” (“A king is never late; when the king arrives, the appointed time has arrived”), Ojebode described the saying as an enduring expression of the unique cultural philosophy that governs the institution of the Alaafin and the traditional protocol surrounding the throne.

He concluded by calling on scholars and public commentators to cultivate a culture of intellectual engagement rooted in mutual respect, cultural literacy, and national responsibility.

“Responsible scholarship should illuminate rather than inflame, educate rather than denigrate, and strengthen rather than weaken the institutions that preserve our collective history and cultural civilisation.

As academics, we must recover the discipline of disagreeing without desecrating, correcting without contempt, and criticising without diminishing the institutions that define who we are as a people,” he said.