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SOME policy statements by Governor Ademola Adeleke, shortly after his inauguration as the governor of Osun State, may have opened another chapter in the sustained struggle for the soul of the state. KUNLE ODEREMI writes:
Right from November 27 that he was sworn in as governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke has left no one in doubt regarding what would be the direction of his administration. He made profound pronouncements on the shape his administration would take immediately he received the legal instrument of office via the oath of office as the sixth civilian governor of the state. Like he promised when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared him winner of the July 16, 2022 governorship poll, Adeleke, while receiving the report of a transition committee he set up ahead of his inauguration, reiterated that he would run in full throttle from the moment he was sworn in. While receiving the report from chairman of the transition committee, Dr Muyiwa Oladimeji, Adeleke declared: “You have worked tirelessly in the last few months. You have laboured hard to produce a detailed governance blueprint for our dear state. I am at a glance impressed that your committee built on my five-point agenda: workers’ welfare to infrastructure, education, health, agriculture, women, youth, security, information technology, the environment and state economy. We are set to deliver on our electoral promises.” He added: “I make a vow to the people of Osun State that none of the ongoing illegalities will stand under my leadership. Through appropriate channels and platforms, normalcy will be enforced within the ministries, agencies and parastatals.”
But to the then Gboyega Oyetola led government, Adeleke was only playing politics and crying wolf where there was none. The Oyetola administration consistently found fault lines in the claims by the then governor-elect on the running of government and management of state resources based on the standard behaviours, coupled with ethos of prudence, accountability and transparency. Barely 24 hours after his inauguration on Sunday, Adeleke bared his fangs, thereby creating a storm in the tea cup within and outside the political space of Osun. His inaugural speech ‘unveiled’ those perceived sins of the immediate past administration and the one preceding it, especially on the constitutional status of Osun State. The main highlights of his policy statement and pronouncement in that inaugural speech centred on his plans to review certain actions and steps taken by the Oyetola administration after the July governorship poll was won and lost based on the result announced by INEC.
Reactions to those policy statements have come in varying shapes and forms, with key actors in the PDP and the APC obviously at a collision course, while other commentators steered the middle course on the political configuration. However, what is happening in Osun State may not be peculiar or be a far departure from the ‘norm’ in the country since it restored civil rule in 1999. It is a replay of scenarios that play out when there is such leadership change in Government House. Sharp disagreements culminate in litigation to address policy changes, somersault, redesign or reversal as the case may be. According to observers, all this usually constitutes a major distraction, slows pace of developments and heats up the political atmosphere with non-state actors capitalizing on the situation to unleash terror and wreak havoc. A main stakeholder in Osun politics, Chief Femi Alafe who spoke on the current action of Governor Adeleke vis-à-vis the administration of Oyetola said: “Senator Adeleke’s marriage with the Osun State people started on Monday. He has hit the ground running by appointing three competent aides: the Secretary to the State Government, Chief of Staff and Chief Press Secretary. The Labour Unions and Civil Servants turned out in their thousands to welcome him to his office in Abere. I pray that the people will be patient with him as he will need to study government files, especially since the erstwhile government never cooperated with his transition committee. Moreover, Oyetola never left any hand over notes. No doubt, a lot of booby traps seem to have been laid on his path. He will need the wisdom of Solomon to maneuver them. The various appointments made by the previous administration without budgetary provisions at the final stage of their tenure are acts of vindictiveness, spitefulness and quite below the standard and expectations as of ethics and decency.»
However, Alafe urged the governor to tread with caution because of the volatility of some of the issues surrounding the executive orders he has signed into law. He warned: “Chieftaincy and Obaship issues are very delicate and volatile. I am sure he will stick to the rule of law and do the right thing, rather than the arbitrary will of politicians. It is my sincere hope he will adhere religiously to his five cardinal programs. Let him take full advantage of the goodwill he currently enjoys because he will need to take some hard and painful decisions for the good of the State. Honeymoon doesn’t last long in Osun.”
For the PDP, which lost power in Osun 2010, Governor Adeleke represents the new dawn in the main opposition party. It is sync with the way and manner the governor has fired with all cylinders shortly after he was sworn in, and has promised to give full backing to the new government. Similarly, a former governor of the state, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola is rallying PDP members support for Adeleke. He believes that Ede-born politician would make his mark as the number one citizen of the state.
Court as final arbiter?
Most observers are predicting series of litigations by the vested camps and individuals in the unfolding claims and counterclaims in the Osun saga. They situated the development in Osun in the scenarios that played out in some states where new administrations dissolved local government chairmen and the legislature that emerged from ‘disputed’ local council elections. The order issued by the governor on the reversal order on the state of Osun to Osun State also constitutes a strong point of disagreement between the executive and the state House of Assembly. It should be noted that Oyetola’s predecessor and now Minister of Interior, Mr Rauf Aregbesola, as governor, had in 2011, in what he described as part of a restructuring agenda to true federalism, changed the name of Osun State as State of Osun. The action led to litigation at the Osun State High Court sitting in the state capital, Osogbo. In his judgment on the matter, Justice Mathias Agboola declared that Aregbesola’s action as unconstitutional. In his individual capacity, a lawyer, Kanmi Ajibola had instituted the case against the state government over the levy of a personal tax of N5.3 million imposed on him by the state Internal Revenue Service (IRS), on the ground that such levy was illegal because the law upon which the tax was issued was made by the “House of Assembly of State of Osun.” Reports also had it that Ajibola filed a suit in 2017 at the Osun State High Court sitting in Ilesa, which declared that the renaming of Osun state as “State of Osun” by Aregbesola was illegal, null and void. Justice Yinka Afolabi, affirmed that “the law and its makers were unknown to the 1999 Constitution.”
The APC South-West chairman, Mr Isaac Kekemeke insisted that Oyetola›s action subsisted until the end of constitutionalised recognised four-year tenure. Therefore, he said there was no justification for Adeleke’s actions, urging the new governor to exercise authority with moderation and abide by the laws of the country. “Governor Adeleke shouldn’t be too excited; government is a continuum and is bound by contractual relationships duly entered into by competent authorities. One thing he, Adeleke, has probably and sadly overlooked is that Oyetola’s administration did not end with the announcement of his victory by the Independent National Electoral commission. Oyetola was still governor between July 17th, and November 26th, 2022. The right to continuously review government programmes and activities must be exercised objectively and with sobriety; as to do otherwise will be courting distractions through endless litigation and agitation. He (Adeleke) was governor-elect between that period, while Oyetola remained governor with unhindered powers to exercise the functions of that office as he deems fit, albeit legally.”
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The opposition of the state House of Assembly to the contents of the Executive Orders issued by Governor Adeleke also signifies a likely rash of litigation. The executive orders cover chieftaincy matters, appointments issues, setting up of review panel, staff audit and employment matters. The contents include the immediate freezing of all government accounts in all banks and other financial institutions; immediate audit of the actual number of government workers in Ministries, Departments, Agencies, Commissions, Boards and Parastatals, as at 17th July, 2022, and a report to the office of the Chief of Staff to the Governor stating the full details and position/designation of each of the staff on the forwarded list, within seven working days from the date of this Executive order.” The rest are an executive Order that: “All employments in the service of Osun State Government made in any capacity, into any capacity, in all the Ministries, Departments, Agencies, Commissions, Boards and Parastatals after July 17th, 2022 be and are nullified; all appointments in the service of Osun State Government made in any capacity, into any capacity in all the Ministries, Departments, Agencies, Commissions, Boards and Parastatals after 17th July, 2022 be and are hereby reversed; all appointments of traditional rulers made by Osun State Government after 17th July, 2022, are hereby ordered to be reviewed to ensure there was strict compliance with due process of chieftaincy declarations and native law, custom and tradition relating to such chieftaincies. In the case of Ikirun, Iree and Igbajo, to avoid further breakdown of law and order, the appointments of Akinrun of Ikinrun, Aree of Ire and Owa of Igbajo are hereby put on hold pending review. Subsequently, the palaces of Akinrun of Ikirun, Aree of Iree and Owa of Igbajo should remain unoccupied, while security agencies are hereby ordered to take charge.” Accordingly, the sixth Executive Order provides for the setting up of review committees: staff audit/appointments/promotions review committee; state assets inventory and recovery committee; contracts/MoUs/agreements review committee and chieftaincy matters/appointment of traditional rulers review committee.
Meanwhile, rendering the account of his four-year tenure as governor, Oyetola said he did not borrow anywhere in the world to run his government. He said he maintained fidelity with his electoral promises since assumption of office. He stated that his administration put Osun’s economy on a surer footing through many people-centred and masses-focused projects. He said Osun on his watch was stable economically, as manifested in the astronomical increment in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the state since he assumed office.
The coming weeks are crucial in giving further direction on the unfolding battle between the camp of the governor and his predecessor. The issues thrown up by the Executive Orders signed by Adeleke are multi-faceated, with many stakeholders in Osun watching out for the implications of the governor›s actions and pronouncements thus far. His decison to inaugurate the various committees set up on the contents of the executive orders indicate his readiness to go the full haul, despite the reservations being expressed in certain quarters.
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