OSUN CRISIS: GOVERNOR ADELEKE CONDEMNS ILLEGAL OCCUPATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT SECRETARIATS

GOVERNOR ADELEKE CONDEMNS ILLEGAL OCCUPATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT SECRETARIATS

TEXT OF A STATE BROADCAST BY THE GOVERNOR OF OSUN STATE, HIS EXCELLENCY, SENATOR NURUDEEN ADEMOLA ADELEKE, ON THE ILLEGAL OCCUPATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT SECRETARIATS AND THE DEFENCE OF DEMOCRATIC ORDER IN OSUN STATE.

My dear people of Osun State, the urgent necessity to restore lawful, peaceful, and effective governance at the grassroots in our state compels me to speak to you at this time.

For close to one year now, local government secretariats across Osun State have been under illegal occupation by the court-sacked APC chairmen and councillors, whose election was nullified by the Federal High Court, Osogbo, in November 2022, and affirmed by the Court of Appeal on 10 February 2025 and again on 13 June 2025.

Their election was struck down because it was conducted in clear violation of the requirements of the law.

I did not remove these APC chairmen and councillors from office. The court did. Since then, they have had no lawful mandate whatsoever.

Yet, in brazen contempt of the law and in repudiation of democratic decency, they have refused to vacate the secretariats, emboldened by the backing of the Nigerian Police, as allegedly instructed by former Governor Gboyega Oyetola.

By contrast, pursuant to subsisting court orders, the Osun State High Court directed the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission to conduct fresh local government elections.

In compliance, after giving the required 360 days’ notice, lawful local government elections were held on 22 February 2025, and duly elected chairmen and councillors were sworn in on 23 February 2025. These officials constitute the only lawful local government leadership in Osun State today.

Illegal Tenure Elongation

It is a settled matter of law that the tenure of elected officials in Nigeria cannot be extended for a single day after the expiration of their tenure. The Supreme Court, in the case of former Governor Ladoja of Oyo State, ruled that the governor’s tenure could not be extended after finding in his favour that he was removed from office illegally for about eleven months and reinstating him to office.

In several filings that have become public documents in our courts, including the Supreme Court, their lawyers and the Attorney-General of the Federation admitted that these APC chairmen and councillors have no claim to office beyond October 22, 2025.

To further confirm that their so-called tenure has expired, the APC chairmen and councillors approached the Federal High Court, seeking an extension of their expired tenure.

That case has not been heard. But the very act of seeking an extension amounts to a clear admission, both in law and in fact, that whatever so-called tenure they claimed they had had expired. Assuming, without conceding, that the APC chairmen and councillors had any tenure, that tenure expired on October 22, 2025.

Despite these incontrovertible legal facts, they have continued to occupy the local government secretariats by brute force, with police protection allegedly acting on the instructions of former Governor Gboyega Oyetola.

A few days ago, believing that these APC imposters would honour even their own admission that their tenure had expired, local government workers attempted to resume their duties.

Although the police initially promised protection, many of these workers were instead beaten, harassed, and intimidated by a combination of armed police officers and APC thugs. The use of armed police officers to occupy local government secretariats and intimidate civil servants is a grave abuse of power and an affront to democracy.