Information on the situation for heirs to the throne, particularly in Emure-Ekiti in Ondo State, is currently unavailable to the DIRB in Ottawa. Oral sources consulted by the DIRB could only provide general information on the chieftaincy tradition of Ile Ife, the traditional paramount seat of Yorubaland and Yoruba culture. According to the sources, Emure-Ekiti, about 70 kilometres from Ile Ife, is part of that Yoruba culture. A Nigerian professor of political economy at Rowan College in Glasboro, New Jersey stated that the structure of traditional governance in Emure-Ekiti consists of the king (Elemure), the main or prime chief (Ojo Pagogo), and the council of chiefs made up of compound chiefs (clan leaders) (21 Sept. 1994). The main chief serves as the link between the king and the council of chiefs. The king's continuance in power depends on the will of the council of chiefs. The compound chiefs depend on the approval of the members of the compound, and can be overthrown at compound meetings held every Saturday (ibid.).

The Elemure is selected from a group of two or three candidates submitted by the council of elders from the ruling houses with rights to the throne. The council of elders is a committee of the oldest males of the ruling houses. The nominees are submitted to the council of chiefs, one of whom is "anointed" by the King of Ile Ife as the King of Yorubas. The position of Elemure is restricted to males of the ruling houses. The nominee has the option dropping out of the contest before the nomination reaches the "anointment" stage. The post is an honourable and powerful traditional position and nominees rarely turn down the honour (ibid.).

This information was corroborated by a Nigerian professor of art history at Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Indiana (21 Sept. 1994). The professor added that the post of Elemure is rotational and when the incumbent dies, he must be succeeded by someone nominated from the other ruling families (ibid.). Both sources were unable to indicate which were the ruling families in Emure-Ekiti. For basic information on Yoruba history, customs, law and political and social structure, please refer to the attachments.

This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Professor of art history, Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Ind. 21 September 1994. Telephone interview.

Professor of political economy, Rowan College, Glasboro, NJ. 21 September 1994. Telephone interview.

Clarke, William H. 1972. Travels and Explorations in Yorubaland 1854-1858. Ibadan: Ibadan University Press, pp. 252-8.

Eades, J.S. 1980. The Yoruba Today. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. xiv-xix, 17-29, 118-43.

Ellis, A.B. 1974. The Yoruba Speaking Peoples of the Slave Coast of West Africa: Their Religion, Manners, Customs, Laws, Language, Etc. London: Curzon Press, pp. 164-90.

The New Encyclopaedia Britannica. 1989. 15th ed. Vol. 12. Edited by Philip W. Goetz. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc., p. 855.

_____. 1989. 15th ed. Vol. 29. Edited by Philip W. Goetz. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc., pp. 906-7.

Sources of Yoruba History. 1973. Edited by Ogunba Ajin. Oxford: Clarendon Press, pp. 85-110, 205-23.