- Those Plotting To Use False Court Ruling To Cause Chaos ‘ll Face the Law — Adeleke
- Stop Misusing Powers, Obey Appeal Court Ruling…No Vacancy In LG Councils-APC
By Kolawole Ojebisi
A ruling by Court of Appeal on the legality or otherwise of local government elections conducted prior to the inauguration of the current administration has triggered a war of words between Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, and the All Progressives Congress (APC).
This is as Governor Adeleke on Thursday said he had received reports of a sinister plot by opposition political parties to launch vicious attacks on local government secretariats across the state.
Adeleke also claimed that there were plans to target leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) and senior officials of his administration.
The governor made these allegations in a statement issued by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, on Thursday.
According to the statement, Adeleke alleged that the plan was designed to disrupt the forthcoming local government elections and create an atmosphere of chaos to push for the declaration of a state of emergency.
The statement stressed that the governor warned that anyone apprehended over the plot would face the full weight of the law.
Describing Osun as one of the most peaceful states in the country, Adeleke condemned the desperation of opposition politicians, particularly members of the All Progressives Congress. He accused them of fabricating court rulings, spreading fake news, and constructing false narratives instead of preparing for the February 22 elections.
Adeleke insisted that a subsisting court judgment secured by the APP had nullified the 2022 local government election, declaring that the ruling remained valid in both law and reality.
“I have issued stern directives to security agencies to secure the state and apprehend any troublemakers. There is no legal basis for any plot to take over the local government system in Osun State. Elections to fill the offices of chairmen and councillors are scheduled for February 22.
“Anyone who tests our resolve to maintain law and order in Osun State will have themselves to blame. As the Chief Security Officer of the state, I am determined to deploy all available resources to uphold peace and punish troublemakers.
“I also urge citizens and residents of the state to go about their normal activities without fear or intimidation. The government is fully in control. We are committed to keeping the state and its streets safe from anti-democratic elements,” the governor said.
However, in response, the spokesperson for Osun APC, Kola Olabisi, cautioned Adeleke against misusing executive powers to incite a crisis over the court ruling.
Olabisi maintained that the Court of Appeal had reinstated the local government council chairmen who were sacked when Adeleke assumed office over two years ago.
He advised the governor to approach the Supreme Court if he sought further redress on the local government elections, arguing that the latest judgment was in favour of the APC-elected chairmen and councillors.
He further stated, “The governor’s claim that the opposition is planning to incite crisis is purely imaginary. A property owner cannot be prevented from accessing what is legally his when he has the law on his side.
“There is no reason our elected local government chairmen, who are preparing to resume office, would want to create unrest in their constituencies.
“Assuming — without conceding — that some individuals are plotting to cause unrest in the state, Governor Adeleke should first examine his party thugs, who have been terrorising and attacking innocent APC members and supporters since the Court of Appeal ruled in favour of our chairmen and councillors on Monday.
“One thing is clear: there is no vacancy at the local government council level in Osun State, as established by Monday’s Court of Appeal judgment. Parents and guardians should advise their children not to become tools for thuggery in the hands of desperate PDP politicians, whose own children are safely living abroad.”
