EDITORIAL: Oyetola Departing On The Wrong Note!

The outgoing Governor of the State of Osun is diminishing both himself as well as the exalted office he is in the temporary custody of by refusing to cooperate with the incoming Ademola Adeleke administration.

Reports have diligently exposed the roadblocks, including subterfuges mounted by the outgoing Oyetola administration designed to obstruct the smooth handing over of power desirable in a democracy.

The obfuscation comes with a price tag which will be borne by the good people of Osun State. It is of course totally unnecessary, and is an affront on democracy. In a democracy, the seamless transition from one administration to another irrespective of party affiliation should be guaranteed since the processes of government is continuum.

In recent weeks, we have seen seriously contested national presidential elections in Kenya and Brazil. Bitter as the contests were, even involving judicial review, the outgoing administration cooperated in transition with their bitter ideological rivals. Nothing else is to be expected in a democracy.

On our part, we are not being wise after the event. A few weeks ago, we advocated a national transition law applicable at all levels to prevent these sorts of shenanigans and we have now been proven right. Such laws are in existence and have been proved to be efficacious in amongst other places such as Ghana, Republic of South Africa, Kenya, and so forth. The child-like self-centeredness of the Oyetola administration proves beyond even unreasonable doubt that Nigeria has no option but to follow suit. We can only ponder the carnage that will be the outcome of the absence of transition laws in states across the country next year.

The incoming Adeleke administration will have to be imaginative in making the best of an awful situation. Learning from their own hideous experience they should blaze the trail by passing a transition law to guide future changes of administration in the state. The present mendacity contrived by the Oyetola government must not happen ever again.