In the heart of Nigeria’s southwest, Osun State has become a battleground not just for political supremacy but for the very soul of grassroots governance. The ongoing controversy over local government (LG) funds estimated at over N131 billion withheld for 10 months, pits the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) under Governor Ademola Adeleke against the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC). At its core, this isn’t merely a financial dispute, it’s a stark illustration of how entrenched political interests can hijack public resources, undermine court rulings, and erode democratic principles.
As a keen observer of Nigerian politics, I argue that the APC’s alleged maneuvers in this saga represent a desperate, undemocratic cling to power that prioritizes partisan gain over the welfare of Osun’s citizens. This isn’t just bad governance, it’s a betrayal of the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling on LG autonomy, and it demands immediate federal intervention to restore sanity.
Let’s dissect the mess. The roots trace back to 2022, when APC chairmen were elected in what the PDP has long dismissed as a sham process under former Governor Gboyega Oyetola, now the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy.
Courts have since nullified those elections, sacking the chairmen whose tenures purportedly lapsed in October 2025. Yet, these “sacked” officials continue to occupy council offices, allegedly with federal backing, including police protection. The Supreme Court’s July 2024 decision affirming LG financial independence should have ended state interference, ensuring direct fund disbursements to councils.
Instead, Osun’s allocations have been frozen, leaving local workers, teachers, and pensioners in limbo while political operatives play games with billions of naira. The latest escalation is nothing short of scandalous. On February 1, 2026, the Osun State House of Assembly accused the APC chairmen, Oyetola, and United Bank for Africa (UBA) of diverting nearly N50 billion in LG funds. Reports detail unauthorized payments: N25 million to each of 30 APC chairmen, N12 million to vice chairmen, N10 million to councillors, and even N130 million to selected traditional rulers plus a whopping N13 billion in “legal fees” to a firm representing the chairmen.
This isn’t creative accounting; it’s outright looting disguised as politics.
The Assembly’s statement labels it “deliberate complicity in a financial crime,” and they’re right how else do you explain disbursing funds to unelected figures while grassroots services crumble?
UBA’s role adds a layer of corporate intrigue that reeks of coercion or complicity. Court documents show Osun filing 31 criminal charges against the bank and its executives for opening illegal accounts, leading to a bench warrant issued on January 30, 2026.
Allegations swirl that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) pressured UBA to facilitate these payments, threatening license revocation if they refused. If true, this implicates the federal government in a partisan scheme, using regulatory muscle to prop up APC loyalists in a PDP state.
The CBN and Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) have denied releasing funds to the APC chairmen, calling it “rumor,” but court affidavits and ongoing litigations tell a different story.
Why the denials when evidence points to special UBA accounts receiving federal allocations?
From an opinion standpoint, this is APC at its most cynical.
The party’s insistence that their chairmen are “entitled” to the funds ignores judicial realities and the Supreme Court’s autonomy mandate. It’s a classic case of federal might bullying a state opposition, reminiscent of past withholdings but amplified by Tinubu’s administration. Governor Adeleke’s camp accuses Oyetola of orchestrating this from Abuja, using his ministerial perch to weaponize funds against his successor.
Local governments are starved, yet APC operatives allegedly siphon billions for “projects” that smell like election slush funds. Critics might argue this is just partisan bickering, with Adeleke’s PDP equally culpable in past disputes. Fair point, but the facts here tilt heavily against the APC: multiple court injunctions barring fund releases to sacked chairmen, yet persistent allegations of diversions.
The APC’s defense that litigations, not federal spite, caused delays, rings hollow when their figures continue operating under police guard. This isn’t about rule of law; it’s about bending it to retain influence in a lost state.
In my view, this controversy underscores a deeper malaise in Nigerian federalism: the weaponization of central institutions against states. If the APC truly believes in democracy, they should vacate the councils, allow fresh elections, and let funds flow to legitimate administrators. Anything less perpetuates a cycle of impunity that disenfranchises Osun’s people.
Only the carrier officers such as Head of local administration, Director of finance and direction of admin of the LG are entitled to withdraw money from the LG account as its enshrined in the Constitution
Anybody who does this on their behalf have committed criminal offense and liable to be prosecuted in the court of law
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should probe these diversions, and the CBN must clarify its role transparency isn’t optional in a democracy.
Osun deserves better than this farce. Until the APC relinquishes its illegal grip, this scandal will remain a damning indictment of how power corrupts, and absolute federal power corrupts absolutely. It’s time for proper accountability, recovery of the stolen fund, and the jail terms to those who deserve it forthwith, no more excuses.
E-signed: Hon Comrade James Onifade
Advocate for Good Governance and A Better Judicial System
