Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun has directed career heads of local government areas (LGAs) and area councils development areas (ACDAs) to take charge of their councils from the sacked council chairmen and councillors.

The directive is contained in a statement issued by Mr Adeleke’s spokesman, Olawale Rasheed.

The directive took immediate effect.

“Governor Adeleke also directed the most senior career heads across all the local government areas to take charge of their councils,” the statement said. “This is in compliance with the judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo that sacked the council d local government chairmen and councillors.”

On Friday, Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel of the Osogbo Division of the Federal High Court declared the local government election conducted by the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission null and void.

Mr Ayo-Emmanuel delivered the judgment based on a PDP suit, asking the court to stop OSIEC from conducting the Osun October 15 local government election.

The judge ruled that the council election OSIEC conducted contravened sections 29 and 32 of the Electoral Act, 2022.

Reacting to the ruling, the chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in Osun, Abiodun Idowu, called on its members to remain calm and peaceful.

Mr Idowu said the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and all the chairmen across the 69 LGAs, ACDAs had filed a ‘Notice of Appeal and Stay of Execution’ against the ruling. 

(NAN)