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OSUN LG QUAGMIRE: HALT ELECTION – AGF; HOLD FRESH ELECTION – OZEKHOME
The Federal Attorney General, Lateef Fagbemi, has asked Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State to suspend the Local Government elections scheduled for Saturday.
Fagbemi stated this while commenting on the ongoing crisis in the state.
In a statement issued late Thursday, he said the position of the law was clear on the development creating friction between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Some persons, including a former council chairman, were killed while many sustained injuries in the clash that ensued over the attempt to take control of Local Government secretariats.
The Osun state government had blamed the crisis on the APC and former governor Gboyega Oyetola, now Minister of Marine and Blue Economy.
Adeleke had vowed that nothing would stop Saturday’s election from holding, urging the people to turn out en masse.
But in his statement on Thursday, Fagbemi said the order which the governor relied on to sack the local govrnment chairmen elected under the administration had been nullified by the court.
“My attention has been drawn to the PUBLIC OUTCRY OF Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke concerning the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Akure division delivered on 10th day of February, 2025 in Appeal No CA/AK/272/2022 which nullified and set aside the judgement of the Federal High Court, Osogbo, Osun State, delivered on 25th day of November, 2022.”
“It has become necessary to issue this public notice to remove doubts, fears and uncertainties created by misrepresentations and disinformation concerning the legal effect of the judgement of the Court of Appeal.
“Putting matters in proper context, the event that led to the two judgements was that during the currency of the term of the former Governor of Osun State, Adegboyega Oyetola, election was held into all the local governments of Osun State and winners were sworn in.
“However, a few days before the swearing in of Governor Adeleke, the Federal High Court Osogbo delivered the judgement referred to above in which it nullified the election of the Local Government elected officials and removed them from office. As soon as Governor Adeleke assumed office a few days after the judgement, he issued executive order for the physical removal of the elected officials and replaced them with caretaker appointees.
“Meanwhile, the APC that was a party in the Federal High Court case referred to above appealed against the judgement. The Court of Appeal eventually, on 10th day of February, 2025 delivered its judgement in the appeal filed by APC against the judgement of the Federal High Court. The Court of Appeal not only allowed the appeal, it also held affirmatively that the suit that resulted in the judgement of the Federal High Court referred to above was incompetent and consequently made an order striking out the suit.
“Accordingly, the judgement of the Court of Appeal had by implication effectively restored the elected Local Government officials removed by the Federal High Court, back to their offices.
“According to the facts made available to my office, it was the attempt by the said elected officials to resume back in their positions that was resisted by some disgruntled elements which led to the crisis. His Excellency, the Governor of Osun State, Ademola Nurudeen Jackson Adeleke is no doubt aware of this scenario and ought, as a leader to have called the disgruntled elements to order in accordance with his Oath of Office to maintain law and order in Osun State.
” Notwithstanding the judgment of the Court of Appeal referenced above, which in effect means that the term of office of the elected officials has regained currency and will naturally run out in October, 2025, His Excellency has insisted that a new Local Government election shall be held on Saturday, 22nd February, 2025. Any such election that may be held will not only be invalid since the term of office of the elected officials just restored by the judgement of the Court of Appeal will still be running until October 2025, it will also amount to an egregious breach of the Constitution which Governor Adeleke has sworn to uphold. Again, the recent judgement of the Supreme Court which has validated and entrenched Local Government autonomy also strengthens the obligation on Governor Adeleke to ensure smooth, non-violent transition from one elected officials to another in accordance with the statutorily prescribed three-year tenure.
“It is, therefore, of utmost importance for Governor Adeleke to advice Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) to shelve the idea of proceeding with any Local Government Election now.
However, renowned constitutional lawyer and human rights activist, Professor Mike Ozekhome (SAN), has recommended that fresh elections be conducted to resolve the local government council dispute in Osun State.
In a statement released on Thursday in Abuja, Ozekhome noted that holding new elections is the only solution to save the state from “needless orchestrated violence.”
According to his interpretation of the Court of Appeal judgment, the appellate court did not reinstate the sacked local government officials but only struck out the case brought by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He said, “I watched with dismay and disgust as certain LG officials forcefully barged into the LG headquarters, attempting to reclaim office under the false and erroneous belief that the judgment of the Court of Appeal in the PDP case had reinstated them. Such an act was nothing short of brigandage and a crude resort to self-help. It must be condemned in the strongest terms, and I so condemn it. It was selfish and uncalled for.
“In the same vein, all those who aided and abetted this democratic aberration must be identified and prosecuted, no matter how highly placed they are.”
Ozekhome clarified that the Court of Appeal never validated the election conducted by the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) in 2022. The appellate court merely struck out the PDP’s case without addressing the validity of the elections or commenting on the sacked officials’ positions.
“Contrary to the position of the sacked LG officials who sought to reclaim their offices forcibly, the Court of Appeal never reinstated them. Any claim to that effect is a deliberate distortion of facts and a resort to sophistry,” Ozekhome stated.
He further explained that the only consequential order made by the Court of Appeal was a directive for the PDP to pay the appellants costs of ₦250,000. There was no order reinstating the ousted chairmen.
Ozekhome urged all political parties in Osun State to prepare for fresh polls, allowing them to test their popularity in a free, fair, and credible election. He advised politicians to desist from dragging the judiciary into political battles, urging them to “play clean politics.”
The senior advocate also refuted allegations of judicial complicity in the Osun State LG imbroglio, asserting that the judiciary acted in good faith and remained committed to upholding the rule of law and electoral integrity.
“It is now the responsibility of law enforcement agencies and government institutions to ensure that judicial decisions are respected and upheld. All persons and authorities must obey court judgments. Parties are not permitted to pick and choose which judgments to obey or disobey,” he stated.
Ozekhome highlighted that the judiciary’s decisions in both the PDP and All Progressives Congress cases demonstrated the supremacy of the Electoral Act over state laws in regulating local government elections.
He concluded by referencing the legal doctrine of “covering the field,” which invalidates any state law inconsistent with federal laws, rendering such laws null and void to the extent of their inconsistency.
