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Osun: Adeleke Dares AGF, Says LG Polls Must Hold
By Eric Elezuo
Amid crisis rocking the local government administration in Osun State, the state Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has insisted that the local government elections scheduled for Saturday will proceed as planned. This is inspite of an appeal from the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, to suspend the polls, and allow the alleged reinstated chairmen, who are members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to complete their tenure.
Adeleke’s spokesperson, Mallam Olawale Rasheed, in a statement made available to The Boss, on Friday advused all parties to abide by democratic norms while reiterating that democracy is guided by the rule of law, and that no individual has the authority to override the courts.
“My advice to all parties, including local and national stakeholders, is to abide by democratic norms,” he said.
He further informed that the PDP as a party are willing to play by the rule of law, insisting that the elections will hold.
“As for me and my people, we stand by the rule of law, not illegal self-help. Election is going to hold, and the outcome will be a fast-tracked development at the local level. I urge our people to remain peaceful. Osun is a truly peaceful state,” the statement read.
But the AGF, in a statement on earlier on Thursday, had urged Adeleke to instruct the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission to halt the election, warning that it would be invalid and a violation of the Constitution.
Fagbemi referenced the recent Court of Appeal ruling in Akure, which overturned an earlier Federal High Court judgment that nullified the previous local government elections conducted under former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola. The ruling effectively reinstated the sacked council chairmen, whose tenure, according to the AGF, remains valid until October 2025.
Fagbemi noted that any such election that may be held will not only be invalid since the term of office of the elected officials just restored by the judgment of the Court of Appeal will still be running until October 2025, but it will also amount to an egregious breach of the Constitution, which Governor Adeleke has sworn to uphold.
He further cautioned against any actions that could lead to violence, urging Adeleke to uphold the rule of law and maintain peace in the state.
Meanwhile, a High Court in Ilesa, also on Friday, gave the state’s electoral body Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), the go-ahead to conduct the polls, urging the security agencies to ensure adequate security.
The court directed OSSIEC to conduct elections to fill the vacant positions of local government chairmen and councillors in all the 30 local government areas as well as local council development areas (LCDAs) in the state.
The order issued by Justice A. Aderibigbe on Friday, February 21, 2025, followed a suit filed before the court by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against OSIEC and its Chairman, Hashim Abioye.
But while the APC claimed that the verdict of the court reinstated its officials that were sacked, Governor Ademola Adeleke, and the ruling PDP denied the claim.
Some APC political functionaries however, have since resumed at the secretariats of about 14 local government areas.
Osun State Government has, however, insisted on proceeding with the scheduled local government elections slated for Saturday against the position of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, who warned against holding the elections until after the expiration of the tenure of supposedly reinstated local government chairmen later this year.
Recall that violence erupted in the state on Monday following the interpretations of the ruling of the Court of Appeal of February 10 on the tenure of local government chairmen elected on the platform of APC.
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
Apart from having the fear of God, one of the greatest desires any individual is a responsible life partner or spouse. In fact, a responsible partner transcends beyond ability to provide as there exists many, who can provide, are still irresponsible. Being responsible is priceless. Being responsible is a currency and goodwill which is not seen among cheap people.
While little girls in high schools are thrilled about the handsomeness of boys, and big ladies in colleges are attracted to the intelligence and financial capacity of guys, mature working ladies are more concerned about the security and loyalty of guys. This set of mature ladies are not concerned about the physical looks and financial capacity of guys. Though money and good looks are important, but they can’t be compared to loyalty and security. This is because a man may not have money, may not look great, and may not even be rich in intelligence, but when a lady sees him as responsible, with prospects, she might take him very seriously, and vice versa.
Asides character, irresponsibility is one thing that detaches a man from a lady. As a matter of fact, when a man senses a lady has been sexually exposed to a lot of men, withdrawal syndrome begins to set in, especially if he’s familiar with such men. Irresponsibility can be attributed to lack of good character or why will a responsible woman be messing around with several men.
One may wonder if this article is about the relationship between a man and a woman. The simple answer is no. The article is about life. I had to begin with human beings to x-ray the importance of living a responsible life. The truth is nobody likes to relate with an irresponsible person whether at work, church, family or events. An irresponsible person will have trust issues, fail in leadership, suffer from accountability issues, and will never be counted as reliable. If negative forces wish to deal with a person, they send an irresponsible people their way, and the individual’s life or work will be completely damaged.
As human beings, we are responsible for our life. It is what we sow that we reap. When we love, we are bound to reap love, when we sow hatred, it has a way of coming back to us. When we sow kindness, kindness will locate us in due time. When we sow hard work, it has a way of paying us back in the near future. When we help the less privileged, we accumulate the grace and mercy of God in the universe. When we invest in people, we tend to open doors, and like a magnet, attracts blessings, favours and opportunities our way.
The question we need to ask ourselves therefore, is what kind of life are we living? According to Socrates, “an unexamined life is not worth living”. Being able to take stock of one’s life is one of the best things that can happen to anyone. Just like a businessman takes inventory of his products, one must be intentional to live a life of purpose. Failure to do so is inviting Karma.
It’s instructive to note that taking responsibility involves a process. It is the foundation one lays that determines the kind of house they live in. For instance, if your tummy aches, what you ate yesterday is the likely the cause; if you are depressed, the culprit is the thought you meditated on the night before; if you are broke, it is usually because you mismanaged your money earlier; if you are overweight, it is because you over-ate in the past. Did you see that actions have consequences and it’s your responsibility to fix yourself with the right thoughts and actions.
The moral of the story is that your reality today is the consequence of your thoughts and actions of yesterday. And your future will reflect your thinking and deeds of today. It’s important to note that no demon is powerful enough to make you reap what you did not sow, neither is any demon more powerful than Karma. If you are in doubt, sow a seed today, and it will show tomorrow.
So, it is important for one to take responsibility for their lives. Nobody will fix you more than you can fix yourself; nobody can help you more than you can help yourself; nobody can save you more than you can save yourself; nobody can inspire you more than you can inspire yourself; and nobody can make you live a responsible life if you are not determined to be responsible.
It’s sad to see people who haven’t taken time to plan their lives, yet expect other people to fix them. Some people don’t invest in themselves by reading, researching, taking a class, course, learning a skill, traveling, investing in their businesses, relationship, network, volunteering in an association, and adding value to their lives. Sometimes, lazy minds lie idle waiting for the Lamb of God, who will take away their sins and burdens. These lazy minds fail to understand that everyone is dealing with a secret frustration.
In conclusion, decide today to take charge of your life, and see how life will unfold positively for you.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design Your and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
Nigeria may face tanker shortage as the Federal government, on Wednesday, hinted of plans to ban 60,000- and 45,000-litre capacity trucks.
While most tankers hauling petroleum products across the country are around 45,000 litres, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) said such capacity would be outlawed.
Coming amidst rising tanker accidents that have been causing deaths and the destruction of properties, NMDPRA issued an immediate ban on petroleum products tankers with a 60,000-litre capacity.In the absence of pipelines, Nigeria relies on tankers to haul petroleum products across the country, a development that has remained a menace to road infrastructure and the lives of citizens.NMDPRA’s Executive Director, Distribution Systems, Ogbugo Ukoha, told journalists in Abuja that the action on the 60,000-litre capacity would take effect from March 1, 2025, while the 45,000-litre capacity would be allowed to load products until the fourth quarter of 2025.
Reports said between 2010 and 2025, over 2,500 truck accidents claimed more than 3,500 lives in Nigeria, with the deadliest incident occurring in Jigawa in 2024, where an overturned fuel tanker exploded, killing dozens and leaving a scarred mass grave.
While stakeholders had agreed in 2020 to cap truck loads at 45,000 litres, NMDPRA said tankers exceeding 60,000 litres have continued to ply the roads, worsening the accident crisis.
The authority said there would be a phased approach, beginning with the 60,000-litre ban and gradually scaling down to 45,000 litres by the fourth quarter of 2025.
“We cannot fold our hands and wait for pipelines or railways to become viable alternatives,” the official stressed.
“Every life lost is one too many. This is the work we must do, and we will not back down,” Ukoha said.
The 2023 Labour Party, LP, governorship candidate in Lagos State, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, has alleged an attempt to use the Department of State Services, DSS, to force the Speaker of the state Assembly, Mojisola Meranda, to step aside or resign.
Rhodes-Vivour said the invasion of the Lagos State House of Assembly by DSS operatives was a major blow to politics in the state.
Operatives of the DSS and the Nigeria Police, on Monday, took over the Lagos State House of Assembly
The invasion followed a leadership crisis between the Assembly and its former speaker, who was impeached on January 13.
Meranda had replaced Mudashiru Obasa as Speaker.
Obasa was impeached while he was in the United States.
Upon his return to Nigeria, Obasa had insisted that he was not impeached, stressing that the lawmakers failed to follow due process in his removal.
However, featuring on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Rhodes-Vivour said lawmakers must not owe their loyalty to godfathers.
He said: “It was a major low for politics in Lagos State today.
“What we saw today was an attempt to intimidate the speaker to step aside and resign by using armed men and threats of violence.
“Whoever is behind this should solve this problem in a civilized fashion because the State Assembly must owe its loyalty to its constituents and not any godfather.”
