Tenure Elongation Suit: Osun Govt Blasts APC Over Court Absence, Alleges Delay Tactics in LG Crisis
The Osun State Government has berated the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state over what it described as deliberate actions and inactions aimed at prolonging the lingering local government crisis.
The government’s reaction followed the absence of APC lawyers at the hearing of a tenure elongation suit filed by the party at the Federal High Court, Osogbo, on Wednesday.
In a press statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the government described as unfortunate the conduct of the Osun APC, accusing the party of deliberately creating a logjam in the resolution of the local government imbroglio.
According to the statement, the APC had approached the Federal High Court, Osogbo, seeking tenure elongation for its local government officials, whom the state government insists were illegally elected during the October 15, 2022 council polls conducted under the former APC-led administration of Mr Adegboyega Oyetola.
Alimi noted that despite filing the suit and listing 10 lawyers, including three Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), none of the party’s counsel appeared in court when the matter came up for hearing.
He recalled that the October 15, 2022 local government election had earlier been nullified by the Federal High Court on the grounds that it violated the Electoral Act, adding that subsequent judgments delivered on February 10, 2025, and June 13, 2025, did not in any way reinstate the APC-backed officials.
“I wish to unequivocally restate for the umpteenth time, that, it is quite clear that the election conducted on 15th October, 2022 by the then APC-led government in Osun state under the leadership of Mr Adegboyega Oyetola was not only illegal but also against the Electoral Act. This development, was the reason why the Federal High Court, Osogbo, was approached to get it nullified and same was outrightly nullified.
“However, in order to continue to carry on with their known mischiefs to lay claim to an illegal power, they ( APC) have been twisting the judgments of February 10, 2025 and June 13, 2025 claiming that they have been reinstated. However, reverse is clearly the case in the eyes of the law of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as the court already nullified their purported election.
“It is in the public domain, that, in order to carry on with their illegality, they claimed they filed a case at the Federal High Court in Osogbo for tenure elongation but today they ran away from the same case. They even mischievously claim that they are not asking for tenure elongation but tenure determination. This is clearly a bizarre!
“We want the public to know that when they (APC) filed the case, they were supposed to have mobilised the bailiff of the court to go and serve the court processes but deliberately they to do so. Instead, it was the counsel to Osun state Government who mobilized the bailiff to Abuja to go and serve all the processes on the remaining defendants. Who is then guilty of undue delay?
“When the matter came up for hearing today, Wednesday ,28th day of Jan 2026, despite the fact that they listed 10 lawyers, 3 of whom are Senior Advocates of Nigeria ( SAN), it was a thing of shock and disappointment today due to their own way of causing delay for the case, all their lawyers feigned different excuses in a letter to the court that they all had cases and that none of them could get chance to appear before the court of law for the hearing of the long awaited matter which they are touting as the basis of their illegal stay in the council secretariats. The case consequently got adjourned to the 4th day of March, 2026.
“We are putting this before the public to further bring to the fore the usual shenanigans and antics of the APC in Osun State led by Alh Gboyega Oyetola, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy so that the local governments imbroglio being experienced in the state for almost one year now would not be resolved once and for all, hence their resort to delay tactics.
“It is quite unfortunate that the APC that filed a suit in the first instance for tenure elongation is still the same APC that abandoned the case so that the delay will aid them to continue to unleash havoc and brigandage in Osun Local Governments. They falsely accused Governor Adeleke of filing frivolous cases to frustrate them when in actual fact, they are the saboteurs. They claimed local government funds are not being withheld by the Federal Government but can’t explain where the funds are and how they have been spending same. This further confirms their desperate plan to divert public funds to their private political pockets, relying on federal powers and influence of Alh. Gboyega Oyetola”.
“We are therefore using this medium to call on all stakeholders in Osun, Nigeria and the world at large to come to the rescue of the government and good people of Osun State so as to let APC and their cohorts to stop forthwith all these acts of lawlessness, which at best, negates the whole essence of democracy with which they are illegally laying claim to the leadership of the third tier of government in a state known for peace and tranquility” the statement ended.
Hafsoh Isiaq is a graduate of Linguistics. An avid writer committed to creative, high-quality research and news reportage. She has considerable experience in writing and reporting across a variety of platforms including print and online.
