Benin Traditional Council (BTC) has further clarified the issue of the structure of the Benin traditional institution.
According to a statement by Professor Edoba Omoregie on behalf of the Council “the traditional chieftaincy title of Enogie of any community in Benin Kingdom is the creation of the Oba of Benin and under the authority of the Benin Traditional Council.
“Upon appointment, an Enogie is assigned as a Chief of the Oba Palace to a community as a representative of the Oba of Benin in that community; but never as a traditional ruler as there is only one traditional ruler in the whole of Benin Kingdom, who is the Oba of Benin.
“Despite this unambiguous Benin tradition which is well codified in existing laws, members of the print and electronic media have resorted to erroneously addressing Enogie of the various communities in Benin Kingdom as traditional rulers. This is a serious breach of traditional protocol which has caused unnecessary confusion to many unsuspecting members of the general public who are unaware of this serious sacrilegious blunder.”
The statement admonished “all members of the print and electronic media to refrain from further reference to the Enogie of any community in Benin Kingdom as a traditional ruler, but only as a Chief of the community to which the Enogie has been appointed by the Oba of Benin.”
The statement warned that “any further breach of this traditional protocol would be considered by the BTC as a serious affront to the entire Benin people and the Palace of Oba of Benin, which breach will be visited with serious consequences under the law.”
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