Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke has appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene in the ongoing crisis over control of local government councils in the state, following a dispute surrounding the continued stay in office of reinstated All Progressives Congress (APC) executives.
The crisis began on February 10, 2025, after the Court of Appeal reinstated APC chairmen and councillors elected in 2022, who had earlier been sacked by a Federal High Court and removed through an executive order issued by Adeleke.
Fresh local government elections were later conducted on February 22, 2025, producing Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidates, even as the reinstated APC executives retained control of council administrations.
In a statewide broadcast on Monday, Adeleke described the APC officials as occupying council secretariats illegally, insisting their election had been nullified by the Federal High Court in November 2022 and affirmed by the Court of Appeal in February and June 2025.
He accused the APC executives of refusing to vacate office in defiance of the law, alleging they were emboldened by support from the Nigeria Police acting on instructions linked to former governor Gboyega Oyetola.
Adeleke argued that the tenure of the APC chairmen and councillors had expired and cited ongoing court filings, including at the Supreme Court, which he said acknowledged that their mandate could not extend beyond October 22, 2025.
He added that their request before the Federal High Court for an extension of tenure amounted to an admission that their term had lapsed.
The governor further claimed that statutory allocations to Osun local governments had been withheld since February 2025, amounting to ₦130 billion, and alleged attempts to divert the funds through unauthorised bank accounts.
He said civil servants and grassroots communities were bearing the brunt of the crisis.
Appealing directly to the President, Adeleke said he believed Tinubu was unaware of the situation and urged him to protect democratic integrity by intervening to resolve the dispute.
“I therefore urge Mr President to rescue Osun State local governments from the grip of those whose self-awarded tenure has lapsed,” he said.
However, the Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in Osun State, Abiodun Idowu, dismissed Adeleke’s claims, accusing the governor of stirring public sentiment to justify illegal actions.
Idowu said the APC executives were operating on the strength of the Court of Appeal judgment of February 10, 2025, and confirmed they had approached the Federal High Court to seek judicial clarification on tenure, with the matter expected to progress to the Supreme Court.
He accused Adeleke of triggering the crisis by issuing an executive order to remove elected council officials, adding that any personal dispute with former governor Oyetola should not be pursued through local government administration.
