The Osun State Government has reaffirmed that the sacked local government officials remain removed from office, dismissing claims that the Court of Appeal reinstated them.
The clarification came in response to the judgment delivered on Monday, 10th February 2025, which addressed the legal proceedings surrounding the October 15, 2022, local government elections.
It further assured citizens that the scheduled February 22, 2025, local government election will proceed as planned, while directing security agencies to prevent any unlawful attempts to reclaim office.
In a statement made aavailable to OsunDailyNG and signed by the Osun State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Oluomo Kolapo Alimi, the government emphasized that the recent court ruling did not validate the disputed elections but instead dismissed a case filed by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) on technical grounds.
The court ruled that the PDP’s suit was premature since it was filed before the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) officially published the election notice.
Previous Court Rulings on the Controversial Election
The statement further pointed out that a separate case, initiated by the Action Peoples Party (APP) against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), OSSIEC, and other parties, resulted in a Federal High Court ruling that nullified the October 15, 2022, election.
The judgment, delivered in Suit No. FHC/OS/CS/103/22, declared the election unconstitutional and in violation of multiple provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
The Federal High Court’s ruling, issued on 30th November 2022 by Justice N. Ayo Emmanuel, contained three key points:
1. The election into the LG councils across Osun State held on 15th October, 2022 pursuant to notice of election issued on the 15/8/2022 is hereby declared unconstitutional, invalid, null and void for violation of the constitution and breach of sections 28,29,32,98 and 150 of Electoral Act 2022.
2. All persons or individuals occupying offices in the state local government councils by virtue of the said election are accordingly sacked from holding such offices;
3. Sections 25 and 26 of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission Law 2022 having been enacted in contravention of paragraph 12 of the part II, second schedule to the Constitution and being inconsistent with sections 29 and 32 of the Electoral Act 2022 are hereby struck down.
This ruling was later upheld by the Court of Appeal on 13th January 2025 under Appeal No. CA/AK/226M/2024.
As a result, the government asserted that the only legally binding judgment regarding the local government election remains the one that invalidated the election and sacked the council officials.
Government Directs Security Agencies to Maintain Order
Following these legal clarifications, the Osun State Government has directed security agencies to remain vigilant and ensure that no individual or group disrupts the prevailing peace in the state.
Authorities have been instructed to arrest and prosecute anyone attempting to unlawfully reoccupy local government offices.
Heads of Local Government Administrations (HLAs) have also been urged to prevent unauthorized individuals from entering council secretariats, warning that any attempt to forcefully access government premises should be immediately reported to security agencies.
The statement partly read, “Taking the above positions into consideration, the only valid judgement subsisting as at today is the order of the court, which nullified the election conducted as enunciated above.
“Therefore, we need to inform the entire citizens of Osun State, most especially, the Security Operatives and Heads of Local Government Administrations (HLA’s) to take note of the fact that, there is no judgement restoring the Yes and No Local Government Chairmen back into the various Local Government Councils in Osun State.
“Consequently, we urge the security operatives to arrest and prosecute anybody, no matter how highly placed, who may want to disrupt the current peace being enjoyed in our dear state.
“We equally, urge all our HLAs to ensure that no intruder or political thug is allowed into the premises of any of our local governments in the state.
“Therefore, anybody who makes an attempt to gain entry into any of the council secretariats should be reported to the security agencies.
“Finally, we want to use this medium to inform the citizens of Osun State that barring any unforeseen circumstance, the local government election scheduled for 22nd of February 2025 will go on as planned.”
