The Osun State Government, on Wednesday, refuted claims that it was forcing career officers in local governments to change signatories to council accounts amid the ongoing tussle between the ruling Peoples Democratic Party and the opposition All Progressives Congress over local government control. Punch reports.
The Chairman of the Allied Peoples Movement in Osun, Mr. Adewale Adebayo, had alleged that Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration was coercing Finance Directors and Heads of Local Administration to alter council account signatories.
“We reliably gathered that Adeleke’s government has started taking 30 Local Government Area Finance Directors and Heads of Local Administration to an undisclosed location forcefully. This is unconnected to the contention over who controls the local government.
“The HLAs and the Directors of Finance were taken to these locations to be pressured into changing signatories of council accounts to the newly elected officials.
“These individuals have been reportedly held against their will, an act that undermines the principles of democracy and the rule of law.
“Despite judicial pronouncements from the Court of Appeal upholding the October 15, 2022, council election, the state government continues to act in a manner that contradicts the spirit of the verdict,” Adebayo alleged.
But responding swiftly, Osun State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, dismissed the allegations as “mere speculation.”
“This is just an attempt to say something because the Commissioner for Local Government has confirmed that he never gave such a directive. They have made themselves look foolish in the eyes of the public, so they want to create a false narrative.
“We have never changed any local government account signatories. They should remain troubled. APM is just crying more than the bereaved,” Alimi stated.
Meanwhile, the APC in Osun has urged local government workers to return to their duty posts, insisting that they should remain neutral in the political tussle over council control.
Jamiu Olawumi, a former Special Adviser on Education under ex-Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, who has been speaking for the party, emphasised that the reinstated local government chairmen had already given workers a 72-hour ultimatum to resume work.
The Osun chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress, however, rejected the ultimatum, with Chairman Christopher Arapasopo stating that workers would only return when their security was guaranteed.
Olawumi, however, insisted that workers were expected at their duty posts from Thursday, adding that chairmen and councillors were already running the councils without them.
“It is quite unfortunate that they (workers) are becoming partisan. They need to understand that they are not employed by the state government but by individual local governments. That is why they have Heads of Local Government Administration.
“We encourage them to eschew partisanship and focus on their work. The ultimatum lapses today (Wednesday), and we expect them to resume tomorrow (Thursday). If they don’t, we will continue persuading them to see reasons why they must not be partisan. We are running, and we are running,” Olawumi said.
Efforts to reach NLC Chairman, Arapasopo for comment were unsuccessful, as calls to his phone did not go through, and he had yet to respond to text messages as of press time.
Amid the crisis, an Osun-based civil society group, “The Osun Masterminds,” has called on all parties to return to court to resolve the dispute.
Speaking in Osogbo, the Executive Director of the group, Prof. Wasiu Oyedokun-Alli, urged an end to inflammatory remarks that could worsen tensions.
”All parties must immediately return to the relevant courts to clarify the subsisting judgments so that the current issues can be amicably resolved.
“Once clarified, all parties must respect the decision of the courts and lay the matter to rest once and for all.
“As we approach the 2026 Osun gubernatorial election, all parties must demonstrate their commitment to peace and security. If this crisis escalates into next year, it could destabilize our once peaceful Osun State.
“Local government staff must remain non-partisan and adhere to the rule of law to avoid becoming political tools in the hands of any party,” Oyedokun-Alli stated.
