…Says FG is paying council’s allocations steadily
…Warns State govt against dragging ex-Governor Oyetola
The Forum of the Council Chairmen in Osun State, under the umbrella of Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), has declared that Senator Ademola Adeleke, the Osun State Governor has been responsible for the delay in the execution of developmental projects across the local government areas in the state.
Osun ALGON chided the state government unchecked hypocrisy saying “Adeleke’s government frivolous litigations had been halting grassroots development since the reinstatement of council Chairmen and Councillors by the Court of Appeal judgement of February 10th, 2025.
The Council Chairmen cleared that the Federal Government has been faithful in releasing local government allocation, and paying regularly as and when due into the respective proper councils’ accounts.
Osun ALGON urged Governor Adeleke to live by reality and stop dragging his predecessor, current Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola into his palpable ineptitude and irredeemable woes.
The Local Government Chairmen, in a statement, signed and made available to newsmen by Osun ALGON Chairman, Hon. Samuel Idowu Abiodun, slammed Governor Adeleke for demanding the release of local government allocation into the joint accounts noting that the Governor doesn’t possess such power as it contradicts the Supreme Court judgment in respect of local government autonomy.
Recall that Governor Ademola Adeleke had in a statewide broadcast on Monday claimed among other things, that Osun local government allocation had been withheld by the federal government and that the tenure of the incumbent Council Chairmen and Councillors had expired.
Reacting to some of the claims, Hon. Abiodun explained that the Supreme Court judgment was cleared enough as it affirmed autonomy for the local government administration to operate without any interference from the state government hence ‘meddlesome interloper’ on the part of Osun state government.
He described Governor Adeleke’s myriad of claims as baseless, unfounded and political gimmick calculated to earn undue public sympathy “which in turn had fallen flat on them due to their ulterior motives”
Hon. Abiodun noted that the Council Chairmen and Councillors went to Federal High Court to seek constitutional clarification on the determination of their tenure as against the touted tenure elongation being speculated by the Governor and his aides, maintained that it is constitutionally cleared that any elected council Chairman has three years tenure of office and that the three years of current Council Officers began February 10th, 2025 when they were reinstated by the Appellate Court.
“It is unfortunate that the people in government in the state have been trying so hard to mislead the public on the allocation of local governments in Osun. In contrary, the truth of the matter is that Osun Local Government Allocation has been releasing regularly and promptly as and when due into the various Councils’ Accounts – meaning that the federal government is not at any point withholds Council funds. Till this present moment, all the funds due to our councils had been paid up till date only that Governor Adeleke has been responsible for the full control of the funds due to plethora of legal suits being instituted against the full access of the funds.
“In contrary to Governor Adeleke’s claims, I want the people of the state particularly residents of our various Councils to hold Governor Ademola Adeleke responsible for the delay in the execution of developmental projects which we had made in our appropriation bills recently presented to the Councils’ Legislative Arm.
“Let me make it abundantly clear that Governor Adeleke do not have executive power to demand for the release of Council funds as this is in gross contradiction to the Supreme Court judgment on autonomy of local government administration in Nigeria. Also, the council Chairmen and Councillors deliberately approached the Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo to seek judicial interpretation of our tenure knowing fully well that our tenure began the day we were reinstated by the judgment of the Appellate Court – which, till today, the respondents – PDP and its cohorts had failed to appeal to the Supreme Court. This, by implication, our reinstatement remains valid and constitutional until the three years expiration of our tenure in 2028.
” If not hypocrisy of the highest order, how can Governor Adeleke and his government that claimed we do not have tenure at all now referring and referencing our tenure termination in October, 2025. This is a high sense of inconsistency and hypocrisy.
“We advise Governor Adeleke to stop dragging His Excellency Adegboyega Oyetola into the Local Government issues in Osun State. Those of us in the Local Governments are independent and capable of handling our matter maturely and legally. It is clear to functional sights that the Honourable Minister of Marine and Blue Economy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is too busy in repositioning the maritime sector than to reduce governance to pettiness and political rhetorics of the Adeleke’s government. His position as the Minister has nothing to do with Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and he has no reason to interfere with the issues relating to the Local Government”, Abiodun affirmed.