The crisis over the leadership of local government councils in Osun State has taken a new twist as a civil society group, The Osun Masterminds, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) engaged in a war of words over the stance of the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi.
The Osun Masterminds, during a press briefing in Osogbo on Friday, urged the state government to respect Fagbemi’s position on the ongoing LG dispute, insisting that as the country’s top law officer, his opinions are both official and binding.
Executive Director of the group, Prof. Wasiu Oyedokun-Alli, accused the Adeleke-led government of disregarding both the Appeal Court rulings and the views of the Attorney-General.
“We are to point out, however, that the utter disregard for, not just the Appeal Court, but also the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation, by the Osun State Government is a matter of grave concern,” Oyedokun-Alli said.
He added that legal experts had extensively examined court pronouncements, concluding that the state government was acting contrary to clear judicial directives.
The group also questioned the state government’s refusal to work with elected local government chairmen from a different political platform, asking why political differences should prevent collaboration in governance.
But in a swift response, the PDP dismissed the group’s claims, describing The Osun Masterminds as a partisan tool of the All Progressives Congress (APC) hiding under the guise of civil society activism.
The party’s spokesperson, Oladele Bamiji, accused the group of hypocrisy, saying, “TOM has again confirmed to the people of Osun that it is nothing but a busybody propaganda irritant of the APC.”
Bamiji also criticised the group for treating the personal opinion of the Attorney-General as binding, insisting that only competent court judgments hold legal authority.
