Gunmen have reportedly killed the recently reinstated Chairman of Irewole Local Government, Remi Abass, in Osun State.
The attack occurred on Monday when the deceased chairman arrived at the local government secretariat with his supporters. They were attacked by armed men suspected to be thugs.
Early this morning, reports gathered that there had been significant unrest as members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) clashed over control of local government council secretariats.
The root of the conflict lies in a recent Court of Appeal judgment that reinstated previously sacked elected council chairmen and councillors affiliated with the APC. The APC interpreted this ruling as a mandate to reclaim control of the local councils. Conversely, the Osun State Government, led by the PDP, contends that a prior Federal High Court decision in Osogbo had nullified the elections that brought these officials to power, rendering the appellate court’s decision ineffective.
APC members mobilized to take over various council secretariats. Their efforts were met with resistance from armed individuals, leading to violent confrontations.
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Meanwhile, the security operatives from the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested several suspected thugs who allegedly caused chaos in the state.
The Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke had previously raised an alarm about an alleged plot by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, to instigate unrest in the state.
Adeleke accused Oyetola of issuing illegal directives to security operatives in an attempt to enforce the unlawful return of sacked local government chairmen.
As a press conference on Sunday, the governor alleged that Oyetola, in collaboration with the Osun State Commissioner of Police, the Director of the Department of State Services (DSS), and the Commandant of the Civil Defence Corps, was using his connection as President Bola Tinubu’s nephew to push through illegal actions.
Adeleke had insisted that President Tinubu, whom he described as a true democrat, would not endorse actions capable of leading to bloodshed.
He warned that Oyetola’s alleged scheme, set to begin on Monday, could plunge Osun into chaos.
“The evil plot is being spearheaded by Mr. Gboyega Oyetola in active collaboration with security agencies. He is issuing illegal directives simply because he is the President’s nephew,” Adeleke had stated.
The governor clarified that the local government chairmen in question were sacked by two Federal High Court judgments before he assumed office.
He dismissed claims that his administration was responsible for their removal.
The governor had urged President Tinubu and the public to intervene and prevent what he described as an abuse of power that could destabilise Osun State.
“We see this as a gross betrayal of trust reposed in the Osun state security officers by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Adeleke had stated.
