Recently, political gladiators at the national and state levels turned Osun State to a battle ground.
The crisis over the control of local government areas in the state provided them the opportunity to test their influence, might and how much resources they have acquired through their appointments or elective offices.
For those, who control the judiciary and commanding heights of the security, it was a time for them to interprete court judgements on the crisis to suit their intent and give advisory that were puerile and selfish.
Their co-travellers in charge of the security agencies forgot that they were national officers and turned themselves and the institutions they headed into fighting a sitting governor over matters that the country’s constitution confers powers on him to handle.
By the time the Osun conflagration escalated, eight persons, including a local government chairman, were killed, and scores of others were injured.
The violence broke out when “elected” local government officials on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who were sacked by the incumbent administration in Osun State, attempted to take over the council secretariats three years after their removal based on their interpretation of the Appeal Court judgement.
The state government on its part held on to a Federal High Court ruling, which affirmed their sack and proceeded to announce a date for fresh council elections on February 22, 2025.
The federal government, through the attorney general of the federation, intervened in the crisis, advising the state government not to proceed with the planned polls.
The state government fought back by securing a state high court order that the elections must be held as planned.
The IGP, who is from Ogun state, quickly drafted his men to the state to take over the headquarters of the state electoral commission, apparently to stall the polls.
The IGP’s men also stormed the streets on the election day, arresting electoral officers and seizing the poll materials.
However, the voting took place and Governor Adeleke went ahead to inaugurate the winners but directed them to stay away from the council secretariats until all the issues were legally resolved.
As newspaper, we strongly differ with the IGP on the police role in the matter. It is on record that policemen aided the APC LG chairmen to take over the council secretariats.
From what is in the public domain, the appellate court did not directly pronounce that the grassroots elected officials should be reinstated.
And if the Court of Appeal gave such an order, it was not the responsibility of the “chairmen and councillors” to enforce it.
All they needed to do was return to the court to seek the enforcement of the ruling.
It is settled in law that parties who win cases in court do not enforce them independently.
In contemporary Nigeria, several judgements abound that were against the federal government and the police authorities that have not been obeyed. Yet the winning parties never resorted to self-enforcement of the judgements.
To us, neither the IGP nor the council chiefs participated in the poll. Had they refrained from the use of force and returned to the court to enforce the judgement, the violence and loss of lives that followed would have been averted.
Similarly, we do not think the police high command acted well by deploying its personnel to harass, arrest electoral officers and confiscate poll materials of an exercise authorised by a court of competent jurisdiction.
If the APC and the police had objections to the election holding, the noble thing to do is return to the court to push for its nullification.
At this juncture, we must commend the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state for remaining non-partisan in the crisis and directing its members to stay at home until the issues were resolved. That was a masterstroke.
The governor must also be applauded for his directive to the winners of the LG polls he conducted to stay away from their offices for now. This also doused tension in the state.
As the actors in the crisis maintain the status quo, we advise those on national assignments to focus on serving the nation and giving those in charge of the states a measure of liberty to manage their states.
If they are interested in local politics, let them resign their appointments. It is wrong to use federal might and resources to cause chaos in their states.
Recently, a minister from one of the northern states demonstrated poor knowledge of governance and national assignments, when he declared his priority as winning the state for the APC.
Therefore, all parties must adhere to the principles of democracy and respect the institutions established to maintain law and order.
We also encourage open communication and negotiation between the parties to resolve their differences peacefully.
The security agencies must ensure that the rights and safety of all individuals involved are protected, and those responsible for violence are held accountable.
The politicians must remember that the ultimate goal of local governance is to serve the people and should work towards finding solutions to the problems facing them.
By embracing these principles, the parties involved in the Osun local government crisis can work towards a peaceful resolution, ensuring that democracy prevails and the people’s interests are protected.
