By Dennis Okechukwu
The Accord Party has accused the Federal Government and the Nigeria Police Force of masterminding the ongoing local government crisis in Osun State.
The party alleged that the continued occupation of local government secretariats by sacked All Progressives Congress (APC) chairmen and councillors, despite subsisting court judgments nullifying their election and the expiration of their tenure, threatens democratic governance and the rule of law.
In a statement on Friday, the National Chairman of Accord Party, Barr. Maxwell Mgbudem, said the APC officials were illegally occupying council offices with police protection, even though their election had been nullified by a Federal High Court in Osogbo in November 2022.
He noted that the judgment was upheld by the Court of Appeal on February 10, 2025, and again on June 13, 2025, adding that the officials’ tenure expired on October 22, 2025.
Accord condemned what it described as an abuse of court process by the former APC chairmen and councillors, who it said had approached the Federal High Court seeking an extension of their expired tenure.
The party maintained that there is no constitutional or legal provision for tenure extension for elected officials, warning that such actions undermine representative democracy.
Beyond the leadership dispute, Accord also accused the Federal Government of withholding statutory allocations meant for Osun State local governments, describing the action as unlawful and detrimental to grassroots governance.
The party demanded the immediate release of the N130 billion local government allocations allegedly withheld by the Federal Government and called on the Inspector-General of Police to withdraw security personnel from council secretariats occupied by officials it described as illegal occupants.
Accord reiterated that the only lawful local government leadership in Osun State are the chairmen and councillors elected on February 22, 2025, and sworn in on February 23, 2025, in compliance with a court order.
The party warned that the crisis could be deliberately escalated to destabilise the state and appealed to President Bola Tinubu to intervene urgently to restore order at the grassroots level.
Accord also commended Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, for what it described as restraint and respect for the rule of law during the standoff.