The political crisis surrounding local government leadership in Osun State has taken a new turn as both the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) continue to lay claim to legitimacy, with each side citing court judgments and electoral outcomes in their favour.
At the heart of the controversy is the outcome of the February 22, 2025 local government elections. The Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Hon. Adewale Egbedun, has firmly declared that only the chairmen and councillors elected on that date are the constitutionally recognized officials authorized to manage local government affairs in the state.
Echoing this position, the Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), Mr. Hashim Abioye, also reaffirmed the legality and constitutionality of the February 22 elections.
He emphasized that the electoral process followed due legal procedures and was never annulled or reversed by any court of law. “The chairmen and councillors elected on February 22 remain the only legally recognized local government officials in the state,” he stated.
Supporting this stance, the Court of Appeal on June 13, 2025, upheld the legitimacy of the elections and dismissed an appeal filed by the APC challenging the conduct and outcome of the polls. The appellate court’s ruling affirmed that those who emerged from the February 22 elections were the validly elected officeholders for local government councils in Osun.
However, in a contrasting interpretation, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun insists that a separate ruling of the Court of Appeal delivered on February 10, 2025, reinstated its previously elected chairmen and councillors.
The party maintains that this judgment remains sacrosanct and binding. In a statement signed by Mogaji Kola Olabisi, the Director of Media and Information for Osun APC, the party warned against what it described as attempts to twist or downplay the authority of that judgment.
Amid these conflicting claims, political tension in the state has intensified. The APC recently submitted a formal petition to both the Osun State Police Command and the Department of State Services (DSS), accusing the PDP of sponsoring armed thugs to attack local government secretariats and harass its political officeholders.
According to the APC State Chairman, Mr. Tajudeen Lawal, the alleged plan was aimed at forcibly removing APC officials from council premises.
The PDP swiftly responded to these allegations, labeling them as unfounded and politically motivated. The party’s spokesperson in Osun, Mr. Oladele Bamiji, countered that the APC was attempting to create unrest in a bid to justify its call for a declaration of emergency rule in the state.
He clarified that Governor Ademola Adeleke had already advised all PDP-elected local government officials to avoid entering the council secretariats in order to prevent clashes or escalation of violence.
“They [the APC] are the ones orchestrating unrest, hoping it will justify their long-standing call for emergency rule in Osun,” Bamiji stated.
As tensions rise and both parties continue to assert conflicting legal interpretations, the people of Osun State remain caught in the middle of an intense political standoff over who truly holds the mandate to govern at the grassroots level.