Okpella Kingship Crisis Takes Fresh Turn as Court of Appeal Suspends High Court Judgment
The Court of Appeal in Benin has temporarily halted enforcement of a judgment that removed Michael Sado as Okuokpellagbe of Okpella and ordered Lukeman Akemokue’s return, keeping the long-running kingship dispute unresolved pending appeal.
The Court Battle Over the Throne Takes Another Turn
The long-running dispute over the Okuokpellagbe of Okpella has taken a fresh turn after the Court of Appeal in Benin temporarily suspended the execution of an Edo State High Court judgment concerning the traditional stool.
The appellate court granted an interim stay following an application by the current monarch, HRM Michael Sado, challenging the lower court's judgment on grounds including alleged miscarriage of justice. The order means the High Court judgment cannot presently be enforced while the appeal proceeds.
What the High Court Had Decided
The dispute centres on a March 2026 judgment in Suit No. HAG/12/2025 by Justice O.A. Otamere of the Edo State High Court.
The court had nullified Sado's appointment as Okuokpellagbe and ordered the return of Lukeman Akemokue to the throne. At the heart of the decision was fair hearing. The court held that the process through which Akemokue was removed and Sado subsequently emerged as monarch did not comply with the requirements of due process.
The judgment also found that the government's exercise of its powers over the traditional institution could not be separated from the obligation to act fairly and lawfully.
The Appeal Changes the Immediate Position
The Court of Appeal has not, however, overturned the High Court's judgment. Its present intervention is an interim stay of execution, granted pending the hearing and determination of the appeal.
During proceedings, Edo State Attorney-General Prof. Roland Otaru, SAN, argued for the stay, while counsel to the first respondent gave an undertaking to the appellate court. The appeal has consequently become the next major legal stage in determining whether the High Court's findings will ultimately stand.
For now, Sado remains in the traditional position while the appeal is pending. The case also carries a wider legal question beyond the identity of the monarch: how far can government exercise statutory powers over traditional institutions, and what procedural safeguards must be followed before an existing ruler can be removed?
Until the appellate court determines the substantive appeal, the Okpella throne remains the subject of a legal battle rather than a finally settled succession.
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