Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State has directed the Heads of Local Government Administration (HLAs) in all the 33 local government councils in the state to take over the administration of their respective councils from the Caretaker Committee Chairmen.
Gov. Abiola Ajimobi
The directive, which was contained in a statement issued in Ibadan on Friday by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Dr. Festus Adedayo, was sequel to the expiration of the tenure of the Caretaker Committee Chairmen.
It would be recalled that the six-month tenure of the chairmen, which was renewed by the state House of Assembly, expires on 8th May, 2014.
The statement further disclosed that a list of new Caretaker Chairmen had been forwarded by the governor to the House of Assembly for ratification and approval.
The state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Adebayo Ojo had in a recent statement attributed the delay in the conduct of local government election in the state to legal, rather political considerations.
According to him, the legal constraints, which hindered the constitution of the Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), have made the conduct of the local government elections to be put in abeyance until a competent court of law pronounces on the matter.
“In 2007, former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala unconstitutionally sacked members and Chairman of OYSIEC appointed by his former boss, Senator Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja and replaced them with his own protégés.
“Chief Oyemomilara Okunola and others appointed by Senator Ladoja and who were sent packing by Otunba Akala thus filed an action at the High Court, Ibadan to challenge their unlawful removal from office because the constitution guaranteed them a fixed term of 5 years from 2003 to 2008.
“Oyo State High Court per Hon. Justice P.O.Ige (as he then was) and now of the Court of Appeal, gave judgement in favour of Senator Ladoja’s appointees and held that they were illegally and unconstitutionally sacked by Gov. Akala. The court declared their sack as null and void and ordered that all their entitlements up to 2008 be paid,”Adebayo explained.
He said that the Chairman and members of OYSIEC imposed by Otunba Alao-Akala in office in 2007 also went to court in 2011 to challenge their removal from office by the current governor, Senator Ajimobi, as a follow-up to the judgement obtained by the Ladoja’s OYSIEC men.
The Attorney General said that the Oyo State High Court through Hon. Justice M.O. Bolaji-Yussuff, also awarded judgement in favour of this set of OYSIEC men too and ordered the state to pay them their entitlements.
“It is obvious that the state government is confronted with two sets of judgements from the High Court of the state, with each of the judgements validating the appointment of the claimants before each of the court and also with the earlier judgement declaring as nullity the appointment of the latter OYSIEC men of Otunba Alao-Akala,” he said.
Adebayo said it will certainly amount to contempt of court for the State government to urge the state House of Assembly to proceed with the screening and clearance of the Chairman and members of OYSIEC already forwarded to the House of Assembly by Governor Ajimobi, in view of the court judgements.
He said that the state government therefore chose the path of honour and constitutionalism by subjecting the latter judgement to the Court of Appeal for determination, while the state also settled all the entitlements of the OYSIEC men of 2003 to 2008.
The Attorney General said that the appeal on the case is yet to be heard by the Court of Appeal, Ibadan where it is lodged.
