The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State has made a desperate appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, urging him to intervene in the state’s escalating local government crisis to prevent a total breakdown of law and order. The plea comes as a protracted legal and political battle with the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) has paralyzed governance at the grassroots, leading to violent clashes, a workers’ strike, and a dangerous standoff over federal funds.
Speaking at a media event in Osogbo, the Osun State PDP Chairman, Mr. Sunday Bisi, declared that presidential intervention is now necessary to pull the state back from the brink. The crisis, rooted in conflicting court judgments, has left the state’s 30 local government areas without functional leadership for months.
A Legal Tangle with Violent Consequences
The conflict began after the October 2022 local government elections conducted by the then-APC government under Governor Gboyega Oyetola. A Federal High Court later nullified those elections, sacking the APC chairmen and councillors. However, on February 10, 2025, the Court of Appeal in Akure delivered a judgment that the APC insists reinstated their officials.
This led to chaos. Buoyed by the appellate court’s verdict, the sacked APC chairmen attempted to forcefully reclaim the council secretariats in mid-February, leading to violent clashes with PDP members and security forces across the state. The confrontations were marked by sporadic gunfire and the presence of armed individuals, tragically resulting in the reported loss of six lives.
In response to the escalating violence and security fears, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) directed all local government workers to withdraw their services indefinitely from February 17, 2025, further crippling council operations.
A War of Words and Court Papers
The PDP argues that the APC is deliberately misinterpreting the court rulings and refusing to accept their defeat. They contend that a subsequent Court of Appeal ruling on June 13, 2025, further affirmed the sack of the APC chairmen, paving the way for the new PDP officials who were elected in a fresh poll on February 22, 2025.
“We have served copies of the judgment to all concerned authorities, and we are waiting for them to allow justice to prevail. We will use all legal means to ensure that justice prevails, and we will not fall into the tactics of the opposition party for the declaration of a state of emergency in Osun.”
The APC, however, remains defiant. Their legal team argues that the February 10 judgment unequivocally reinstated their members and that only the Supreme Court can invalidate that verdict. They accuse the PDP and Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration of inciting the public and causing confusion to hold onto power illegally.
The Battle Moves to Federal Coffers
The crisis has now taken on a dangerous financial dimension. The Osun State government has raised an alarm over an alleged “conspiracy” between the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) to release withheld local government allocations into the private accounts of the sacked APC officials.
The state’s Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Dosu Babatunde, called this a violation of public finance law and appealed directly to President Tinubu to intervene before “people for their own self-centered reasons subvert the rule of law”. This fear was echoed by the elected PDP council officials, who warned that paying government money into private accounts would lead to anarchy. The state’s House of Assembly has also formally recognized the PDP chairmen and warned the CBN against illegally releasing the funds.
Conclusion
Osun State is caught in a perfect storm of legal ambiguity, political desperation, and administrative paralysis. With local government secretariats locked, workers at home, and federal allocations caught in a political tug-of-war, governance at the most crucial level has completely collapsed.
The PDP’s appeal to President Tinubu is a clear signal that the situation has moved beyond local resolution. It is a plea for federal leadership to mediate a crisis that now threatens not only the stability of Osun State but also the principles of constitutional order and the rule of law. Without a decisive intervention, the state remains on a knife-edge, with the potential for further conflict looming large.
