DNA Drama Rocks Alao-Akala Dynasty: First Daughter Seeks Exhumation, Paternity Test Amid Fierce Estate Dispute

IBADAN — A fierce legal and emotional storm has erupted in the family of the late former Governor of Oyo State, Otunba Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala, as his first daughter, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Alao-Aderinto, has filed a petition at the Oyo State High Court seeking a DNA test on seven individuals alleged to be biological children of the deceased — alongside an application to exhume the late governor’s remains for the purpose.

The suit, filed before Justice Taiwo of Court 12 at the High Court in Ring Road, Ibadan, under Motion No. I/443/2024, marks a dramatic escalation in the long-simmering succession crisis within the influential Alao-Akala family.

Oluwatoyin, through her legal representative, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Oladipo Olasope, is requesting the court to order DNA tests for herself and the seven individuals listed: Olamide, Adebukola, Olamipo, Olamiju (a serving member of the House of Representatives), Tabitha, and Olamikunle. She also asks that the tests be conducted in a court-approved facility and that results be submitted directly to the judge in a sealed envelope for pronouncement in open court.

Crucially, she is also asking the court to approve the exhumation of Otunba Alao-Akala’s remains from his mausoleum in Ogbomoso to enable the paternity test — a request that could ignite strong cultural and emotional resistance within the Yoruba socio-political sphere.

The legal move comes as part of a broader contestation over the control and distribution of the late governor’s vast and multi-national estate, reportedly including high-value properties across Ibadan, Lagos, Abuja, the United Kingdom, and the United States, a five-star hotel in Ghana, a fleet of vehicles, and bank accounts holding hundreds of millions in naira, dollars, and pounds.

Oluwatoyin’s court action follows an earlier flashpoint in the feud — the controversial issuance of a Letter of Administration by the Oyo State Probate Registry in October 2022 to one Kemi Alao-Akala and Olamide Alabi. Oluwatoyin alleges that the move was done without her knowledge or consent, effectively excluding her from participating in the management of her father’s estate.

In her supporting affidavit, she accuses the defendants of deliberately manipulating facts and orchestrating her exclusion from both the family’s affairs and estate proceedings — an act she insists breaches Nigeria’s laws on intestate succession and tramples on her rights as the first child of the late politician.

Her legal team contends that the list of recognized heirs, which includes only seven persons, is flawed due to unresolved questions of paternity and what they describe as a “winner-takes-all” approach by the estate administrators.