•Oyetola using closeness with Tinubu to cause mayhem – Adeleke
From Lateef Dada, Osogbo
Fear and apprehension have pervaded Osun State over alleged plan by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to enforce the judgment of the Court of Appeal and return the reinstated chairmen and councillors to their offices today.
Expressing the fear at the government house during a press briefing yesterday ,Governor Ademola Adeleke accused the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, of orchestrating plans to cause chaos by conniving with the police, Department of State Service (DSS), and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), to lead the reinstated chairmen and councillors to the local governments.
He posited that the fact that Mr Oyetola is nephew of Mr. President does not confer any such authority on him, saying:”We will not allow any takeover of the local government except through a judicial pronouncement or a democratic process.
Adeleke explained that he had no hand in the sacking of the chairmen and councillors because they had been sacked by the court before he was sworn in, insisting that they were not sacked by his executive order.
“I invite you all to expose a fascist anti-democratic agenda designed to enforce a non-existing court judgment on our local governments. This evil plot is being spearheaded by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr Gboyega Oyetola in active collaboration with the Osun state Commissioner of Police, the Osun state Director of DSS and the State Commandant of the Civil Defense Corps.
“I know Mr. President to be a true democrat, a lover of rule of law, and a believer in the sanctity of the judicial process. I know, as a matter of fact, that Mr. President will never authorise a dictatorial violation of the constitution irrespective of who is involved. It is crucial to add that Mr. President will never support any action that is capable of generating bloodbath and bloodshed.
“I, however, regret to inform Mr. President and the public that Mr Gboyega Oyetola has concluded an arrangement to cause mayhem in Osun state starting from Monday. He is issuing illegal directives to security operatives to enforce illegality simply because he is the nephew of Mr. President. I chose to alert the nation before my people are killed or maimed by a minister dropping the name of Mr. President in connivance with the Osun state security operatives obeying unlawful orders.
“The bone of contention is the brazen effrontery to return to office council chairmen sacked by a subsisting court judgment using a different court decision, which has no consequential order,” Adeleke said.
He appealed to the president to instruct the IGP, the DG ,DSS, the Commandant General of the Civil Defense Corps not to obey an”illegal order from his nephew, Mr Gboyega Oyetola. The Osun State security chiefs should also be called to order.”
In a swift reaction, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, told Adeleke to respect the rule of law rather than resulting to blackmail.
A statement by his media office, made available to journalists yesterday, maintained that the track record of the minister does not portend him as a violence person.
“For the four years he governed Osun, he gave a good account of himself as a man of peace, a respecter of rule of law and one not given to violence. If he is given to violence, he would certainly have fought back violently in 2022 when was brazenly rigged out.
“Again, in 2022, when Governor Ademola Adeleke employed extra-judicial means to sack democratically elected council officials, Oyetola as the leader of party, never preached violence. Instead, he led the party members to court.
“Thankfully, his party won at the Appeal last week. And as peace-loving leader, he appealed to security agencies to enforce the judgement of the court. How can such a man be accused of a destabilisation plot. I think anyone accusing Oyetola of violence needs to have his/her head properly examined.
“The minister is further seizing this opportunity to appeal to his successor to respect the Appeal Court judgement, rather than resort to cheap blackmail, which has no place in law,” Oyetola said.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed workers at the local government to withdraw their services immediately.
In a statement by its chairperson, Christopher Arapasopo, the NLC said,”we hereby direct all our members working in all the LGAs in Osun State to withdraw their services effective Monday, 17th February, 2025 by 12am (midnight).
“We won’t allow our members to return until their safety at work can be assured and guaranteed, which is their constitutional right.”
