The fight for the control of local government area councils in Osun State has taken another dimension as the State governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, on Sunday, accused the immediate-past governor of the State and Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, of planning to cause chaos and anarchy in the State in cohort with heads of security agencies.
Adeleke accused Oyetola of issuing illegal directives to security operatives in the State to enforce what he called ‘illegality’ on the local government area councils “simply because he is the nephew of Mr. President.”
Governor Adeleke raised the alarm at a press conference in Osogbo, the State capital, where he appealed to President Bola Tinubu to insist on the rule of law by instructing the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of DSS, the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC) not to obey any illegal order from his nephew Oyetola.
“I called this press conference to alert the national and global audience about a deliberate plot to create chaos and anarchy in Osun state. I invite you all to expose a fascist anti-democratic agenda designed to enforce a non-existing court judgment on our local governments.
“This evil plot is being spearheaded by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr Gboyega Oyetola in active collaboration with the Osun state Commissioner of Police, the Osun state Director of DSS and the State Commandant of the Civil Defense Corps.
“Before I continue this address, let me affirm that I know Mr. President to be a true democrat, a lover of rule of law, and a believer in the sanctity of the judicial process. I know, as a matter of fact, that Mr. President will never authorise a dictatorial violation of the constitution irrespective of who is involved. It is crucial to add that Mr. President will never support any action that is capable of generating bloodbath and bloodshed.
“I, however, regret to inform Mr. President and the public that Mr Gboyega Oyetola has concluded an arrangement to cause mayhem in Osun state starting from Monday. He is issuing illegal directives to security operatives to enforce illegality simply because he is the nephew of Mr. President. I chose to alert the nation before my people are killed or maimed by a minister dropping the name of Mr. President in connivance with the Osun state security operatives obeying unlawful orders,” Governor Adeleke stated.
He added: “The bone of contention is the brazen effrontery to return to office council chairmen sacked by a subsisting court Judgement using a different court decision, which has no consequential order.
“Let me make it clear that the said Council Chairmen were sacked before I was sworn in as governor of Osun State, contrary to the lies being peddled, that the Chairmen and councilors were sacked by my Executive Order.
“For emphasis, l want to state that I had nothing to do with the sacking of the chairmen and councilors produced by the Osun 2022 local government polls.The Chairmen and Councilors were sacked by two different judgments of the Federal High Court Osogbo.
“The script Mr Oyetola is playing is about the most reprehensible abuse of power in this fourth republic capable of untold and unforeseen consequences on the polity.
“The general public is aware that there were two different Federal High Court judgments on the local government election of 2022. The first judgment was on the suit filed by the People Democratic Party (PDP) which sacked the product of the 2022 polls. The second judgment was on the suit filed by the Action People Party (APP), which also sacked the Chairmen and Councillors produced by the said 2022 Osun Local Government polls.
“The APC appeal against the judgment obtained by the PDP was partially successful, and the said judgment was struck out based on the timing of filing, having been filed before the notice of election was published.
“It needs to be emphasized that the judgment contains no consequential orders.The APC in its amended notice of Appeal, asked the Court of Appeal to reinstate the sacked chairmen and councilors, but the Court of Appeal in its wisdom said it has become an academic exercise. The request for the reinstatement of the Chairmen and Councilors was not granted.
“However, the Appeal by the APC against the APP judgment did not succeed at the Court of Appeal, which makes the judgment still subsisting and alive.
“The Court of Appeal dismissed the APC appeal against the judgment obtained by the APP. The only legal recourse open to the APC is to appeal the APP judgment and the subsequent rulings of the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court.
“The Certified True Copies of both judgements had earlier been forwarded to the Osun state Commissioner of Police, the State Director of DSS and the state Commandant of Civil Defense by the Osun State Attorney General for their information and records.
“The Certified True Copies of both judgments are in the public domain. The judgment of the Court of Appeal on the PDP case was not ambiguous whatsoever. It simply struck out the PDP suit and did not in any of its paragraphs order the reinstatement of the sacked council chairmen and Councilors.
“It is very clear that no consequential order was made because the APP case is still subsisting. As I stated earlier, the Court of Appeal said that the request for the reinstatement of the Chairmen and Councilors has become an academic exercise.
“We call on legal luminaries and the Nigerian Bar Association to fact-check our claims by reading and interpreting the judgments. Even a layman can comprehend the meaning except those with an agenda to destroy the peace and progress of Osun state.
“In a democratic society governed by the rule of law, we all must submit to the law. If we are dissatisfied with the outcome of a court process, we can appeal to the next court to end at the Supreme Court. If you are not sure of the meaning and intent of a court judgment, the system expects you to apply for interpretation again through the court system.
“It is illegal, unconstitutional, and anti-democratic to take the law into your own hands. For a serving minister, the person of Mr Gboyega Oyetola to lead the charge to violate the constitution and foment violence over a judicial process is not only shameful but is sadism and treason taken too far.
“We have it on good authority that Mr Gboyega Oyetola has instructed the Osun State Commissioner of Police, the state Director of the DSS and the state Commandant of civil defence corps to mobilise security operatives from within Osun to effect the non-existent judgement by forcefully taking over the local governments on Monday.”
He noted that Oyetola and the Police boss have been holding a series of meetings on how to effect the ‘illegal operations’.
“We affirm that Mr Gboyega Oyetola has no constitutional authority to issue directives to the security agencies.
“The fact that Mr Oyetola is nephew of Mr. President does not confer any such authority on him.
“We see this as a gross betrayal of trust reposed in the Osun state security officers by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“I want to state that the current nefarious activities of Mr Oyetola and bosses of Osun security agencies constitute grave incitement. These need to stop because we are neither interested in resorting to self-help nor in support of violence to resolve political matters. As much as we are law-abiding people, we are fierce protectors of our rights, at night and by the day.
“I want to place on notice of the Nigerian Public, and our friends in the diplomatic community and the lovers of democracy and rule of law that our people will not accept any attempt to impose illegality and anarchy on us.
“We will not allow any takeover of the local government except through a judicial pronouncement or a democratic process.
“We vehemently reject any ploy to deploy a non-existing court order to achieve local political power.
“I therefore appeal to Mr President who is a renown democrat to insist on the rule of law by instructing the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of DSS, the Commandant General of the Civil Defense Corps not to obey an illegal order from his nephew, Mr Gboyega Oyetola. The Osun State security chiefs should also be called to order.
“I call on Mr President, to instruct the National Security Adviser, and the Attorney General of the Federation, to personally verify the fact that the Court of Appeal judgement did not reinstate the sacked local government chairmen and councilors and the fact that, there is a subsisting judgement of Court that sacked the Chairmen and Councillors produced by the 2022 local government polls.
“The Nigerian public should hold Mr Gboyega Oyetola and the Osun state security chiefs responsible for any breakdown of law and order in the state tomorrow, Monday, and beyond.
“It is unfortunate that the Osun state security chiefs are taking instructions from Mr Gboyega Oyetola just because he is the nephew of Mr. President.
“As much as we will do our best to maintain peace, we call on men and women of goodwill to intervene before it is too late,” Governor Adeleke pleaded.
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