By Seyi Odewale
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Mr Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to intervene in the brewing crisis in the state over the Court of Appeal ruling on the conduct of the council election.
Oyintiloye, who made the plea in a chat with journalists on Sunday in Osogbo, stated that the Court of Appeal’s judgment, delivered on Friday, had started generating tension in the state.
The APC chieftain said that although the court struck out the APC’s request to relist its appeal against the 2022 Federal High Court ruling that nullified the local government elections, the court did not nullify the judgment of February 10, which reinstated the chairmen and councillors.
Oyintiloye, a former lawmaker, stated that the misinterpretation of the ruling by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the state government may result in a crisis in all 30 local government areas if not quickly addressed.
He said that the interpretation given to the judgment by the ruling PDP government, which is now in control of the local government areas, and the planned invasion of the council secretariats on Monday might degenerate into a crisis.
The APC chieftain said, “The crisis is obvious because the elected APC chairmen and councillors would resist any unlawful invasion of the council secretariats, which they are currently occupying.”
Oyintiloye said that the only way the crisis could be averted is for Tinubu to intervene by ordering the deployment of more security agencies to the state.
He said that the loss of lives during the similar crisis on February 17 was still fresh in the minds of the residents, adding that such recurrence should be prevented.
“We don’t want any bloodshed in the state again, and that is why I am calling on the President to intervene swiftly to avoid loss of lives.
“The open declaration by PDP members to invade the council secretariats in the state on Monday can lead to mayhem, and that is not what we need at the moment.
“The state government and the PDP must be cautioned against causing a crisis in the state due to wrong interpretation of the court ruling.
“The verdict of the court on an attempt by the APC to relist the case is obvious, but some people are just hell-bent on causing chaos through misinterpretation of the court ruling. We appeal to Mr President to intervene and protect the lives and property of residents in Osun.
“Osun government is already before the Supreme Court to challenge its inability to access local government allocation.
“It is, therefore, expected of the government to wait for the apex court to take a final decision on it,” he said.
The Court of Appeal in Akure Division had on Friday dismissed an application by the APC seeking to relist an earlier appeal that was struck out on January 13 for lack of diligent prosecution.
While the state government stated that the Court of Appeal ruling affirmed the Federal High Court judgment that had sacked the council chairmen and councillors elected in 2022, the APC maintained that the ruling did not nullify the election.
The case originated from a suit filed by the All Peoples Party (APP) against the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) at the Federal High Court, challenging the legality of the October 15, 2022, LG Election, which featured only APC candidates.
The APC, which later joined the matter at the Federal High Court, had appealed the judgment after the lower court nullified the election.
However, the appeal was struck out on January 13 due to the APC’s lack of diligent prosecution.
APC’s attempt to have the case relisted was also dismissed by the Court of Appeal on Friday.
