Representatives of Governor Ademola Adeleke and former Governor Gboyega Oyetola clashed over the legitimacy of the 2022 local government elections in Osun State.
The representatives of the both camps were on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, where they traded words over the issue
The dispute centers around the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) conducting elections with only a 60-day notice, contrary to the 360-day requirement stated in the Electoral Act.
Kolapo Alimi, Osun State Commissioner for Information, accused Oyetola of orchestrating a deliberate move to install illegal council officials before exiting office in 2022.
Alimi claimed that all political parties warned OSIEC about the illegality, but the commission proceeded with the election.
Alimi urged the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to study the Court of Appeal judgment delivered on June 13, which affirmed the November 30 Federal High Court judgment nullifying the APC’s local government elections.
“It’s quite unfortunate that we are experiencing what we are experiencing in Osun State. If you look back, the architect and the person who caused all these problems is the former Governor of Osun State, Gboyega Oyetola.
“After losing the July 16, 2022 governorship election, he decided to conduct a local government election despite being on his way out,” Alimi alleged.
The APC insisted that only the Supreme Court could invalidate the February 10 Appeal Court verdict that reinstated its members.
The APC argued that the February 10 judgment reinstated its chairmen and councillors, and that the June 13 judgment did not nullify this ruling
All political parties warned OSIEC that what they were about to do was illegal, but it insisted and went ahead with the election,” he added.
Adebayo Adeleke, former Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs under Oyetola, argued that the PDP had no grounds to challenge the elections since some parties chose not to participate.
“In politics, when a political party sees it’s not popular enough, it may choose not to participate. That doesn’t invalidate the election. Those council chairmen and councillors were duly sworn in on November 25, 2022,” Adeleke said.
He stated that the Court of Appeal delivered a judgment in February 2025 that allowed the APC’s appeal and supported the validity of the original local government elections
Adeleke maintained that the PDP chairmen and councillors were the validly elected officials, citing the June 13 Court of Appeal judgment that dismissed the APC’s application to relist an earlier appeal.
