The crisis rocking local government councils in Osun State has deepened as elected officials on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have approached the Federal High Court, seeking an extension of their tenure in office.
The APC officials are asking the court to declare that their tenure, originally set to expire in October 2025, should instead run until February 19, 2028.
The dispute traces back to October 2022, when the APC chairmen were elected. Governor Ademola Adeleke later sacked them after a Federal High Court judgment declared their election unlawful. However, in February 2025, the Court of Appeal reinstated them to office. Despite the ruling, the state government went ahead with local government elections on February 22, 2025, which produced new Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) executives who were subsequently sworn into office.
This development led to a situation where both APC and PDP claimed control of the councils, forcing the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) to abandon work while allocations to the councils were withheld.
In response, the reinstated APC chairmen, through an originating summons filed by Barrister Muhideen Adeoye on behalf of Saheed Onibonokuta and seven others, are asking the court to extend their tenure until February 2028. The suit, marked FHC/OS/CS/147/2025, lists the Attorney General of the Federation, the Inspector General of Police, Governor Ademola Adeleke, the Attorney General of Osun State, the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC), and the Osun State House of Assembly as defendants.
The claimants are urging the court to determine six critical issues, including the validity of the PDP executives’ swearing-in, the interpretation of constitutional and state laws regarding tenure, and the legality of conducting elections while their tenure subsists.
Citing Sections 6(6)(b) and 7 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Section 91 of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission Law, 2022, and Sections 3(2), 9, 10, and 28 of the Local Government (Administration) Law, Cap. 72A, they argue that their tenure should properly begin from the date of their inauguration and assumption of office as democratically elected council members.
They further contend that OSIEC acted unlawfully by issuing election notices, conducting polls on February 22, 2025, and swearing in another set of council executives while their tenure was still running.
Among the eight reliefs sought, the APC chairmen want the court to declare all steps taken by the governor, the Attorney General of Osun State, OSIEC, and the House of Assembly since February 22, 2025, including actions in August 2025, as illegal, unconstitutional, null, and void.
They also argue that any interpretation by the Attorney General of the Federation limiting their tenure to October 2025 is unconstitutional and beyond his powers.
Finally, they are asking the court to restrain Governor Adeleke, the state Attorney General, the House of Assembly, and OSIEC from removing or attempting to remove them from office in October 2025 or at any time before February 19, 2028.
