OSUN STATE CARETAKER COMMITTEES RESIGN FOLLOWING SUPREME COURT RULING ON LG AUTONOMY

Osun State Caretaker Committees Resign Following Supreme Court Ruling on Local Government Autonomy

 In a significant development, around 401 chairmen and members of the caretaker committees overseeing the 62 local governments and council development areas in Osun State have tendered their resignations. This mass resignation comes in the wake of last week's Supreme Court judgment that granted financial autonomy to local government operations across the country.

The Caretaker Chairman of Odo-Otin Local Government Area in Okuku, Adewale Adeyinka, highlighted the respect for democratic principles as his reason for stepping down. In his resignation letter, addressed to Governor Ademola Adeleke and dated July 17, 2024, Adeyinka stated, “It is with a sense of duty and respect for our democratic principles that I write to tender my resignation from my position as Chairman of the Caretaker Committee for Odo-Otin Local Government, effective immediately.”

He further expressed his ongoing commitment to the development of Odo-Otin Local Government, despite his resignation. “As I move on to pursue further opportunities to serve my people, I want to assure you that the good work we have started will not end. I remain committed to supporting the growth and development of Odo-Otin Local Government in any capacity I can,” Adeyinka added.

This wave of resignations follows the Supreme Court's ruling, which barred governors from appointing caretaker committees to run local governments. The apex court declared that only duly elected officials could manage local governments and mandated that any local government currently run by caretakers would have their allocation from the Federation Account withheld.

In a conversation with The PUNCH, the immediate-past Chairman of the Osun State chapter of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria, Sarafadeen Awotunde, confirmed that all 69 caretaker chairmen and 332 members in Osun State had resigned. Awotunde remarked, “Since we already called them caretakers, I don’t think there is any appropriate word to use than that they resigned. Nobody sacked them. Caretakers have temporary time to spend. It means their time is over. If you look at it critically, you will see that the Supreme Court has given a verdict. So whatever is called caretaker now is illegal. So, there is nothing like a caretaker in Nigeria again.”

Osun State comprises 30 Local Government Areas, 32 Local Council Development Authorities, six Area Councils, and one Administrative Office. The most recent set of caretaker committee chairmen and members were appointed by Governor Adeleke in August 2023, with their tenure extended by six months in February 2024. Their tenure was expected to end in August, but the resignations were tendered prematurely.

The Osun State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, confirmed the resignation of the LG caretakers. Alimi explained, “We have been receiving resignation letters. Those who resigned did so to be eligible for the party primary, preparatory for the local government elections coming up next year. The Electoral Act has made it mandatory for whoever will participate in party’s primary to resign from political office first.”

This development marks a significant shift in the governance of local governments in Osun State, setting a precedent for the enforcement of local government autonomy as mandated by the Supreme Court.