The Osun State House of Assembly, on Thursday, affirmed the chairmen of local government councils elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during the February 22 local government poll as the recognised custodian of mandate at the grassroots level.
Rising from the plenary after deliberation on a matter of public urgent importance, which was moved by the lawmaker representing Obokun State Constituency, Honourable Adewumi Adeyemi, the House also cautioned the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) against releasing the councils’ withheld allocation to the chairmen of local governments on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) reinstated by February 10 Court of Appeal judgment.
Heads of Local Government Administration (HLAs) in the state were in attendance during the plenary.
The Speaker, Osun State House of Assembly, Honourable Adewale Egbedun, who read the resolutions, accused the APC of causing hardship for the people due to what he termed illegal occupation of council secretariats, despite the court nullification of October 15, 2022, council poll conducted by the immediate past administration of ex-governor Gboyega Oyetola.
According to him, apart from the nullification of the 2022 local government poll by the Federal High Court and the affirmation of the judgment by the Court of Appeal, Akure Division on 13th June 2025, the certificates of return issued to the said individuals have been withdrawn by OSSIEC since 2022; and new elections have since been conducted in 2025 with new winners declared.
Egbedun stated, “That pursuant to Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution, this Honourable House reaffirms that only February 22nd, 2025 democratically elected local government chairmen and councillors in Osun State are legitimate and constitutionally recognised custodians of local government mandate and affairs.
“That any purported recognition or installation of individuals whose tenure arose from the annulled October 15, 2022 local government elections, and who now falsely claim reinstatement by the Court of Appeal is unconstitutional, null and void, and without legal effect.
“That this House further affirms that, by law, only duly appointed career officers namely, the Director of Finance and the Director of Administration and General Services are authorised signatories to Local Government accounts, as stipulated in Section 14.0 of the 2025 Guidelines for the Administration of Local Government Areas in Osun State.”
Earlier, the Majority Leader, Honourable Kofoworola Adewumi (Ede North), had moved a resolution to resist a plot to unseat PDP council chairmen elected on February 22, 2025, which was seconded by the lawmaker representing Ejigbo State Constituency, Honourable Olujinmi Asagade.
