Osun State’s opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), has dragged Governor Ademola Adeleke to court for appointing himself as the Commissioner for Works.
In a suit before the State High Court in Osogbo, APC challenged Adeleke for appointing himself as a commissioner and also his deputy, Kola Adewusi, as the Commissioner for Sports and Special Needs as announced by the Osun State government on July 19, 2023.
Objecting to the appointments through its lawyer, Sherif Oluyombo, the main opposition party urged the court to determine whether a sitting governor can hold any other executive office.
Referencing Section 192(2) and (5) of the Nigerian constitution, the plaintiff prayed the court to determine whether “a person can be validly appointed a commissioner of the government of a state if his nomination is not forwarded to and received by the State’s House of Assembly for purposes of confirmation.”
OsunDailyNG reports that Adeleke is not the first public officeholder to hold dual roles.
It could be recalled that the immediate past president, Muhammadu Buhari, in 2015 appointed himself the petroleum minister and Ibe Kachikwu as the minister of state for petroleum and later Timipre Sylva in his second term without objection from his party members.
The outcome of the matter may also prevent President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from serving in a ministerial capacity should the court illegalise elected officials from having double appointments.
