A pro-democracy group in the State of Osun, Democracy Vanguard (DV), has admonished the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of the State of Osun, Ismail Omipidan, to stop misinforming the public.
In a chat with members of the Online Media Practitioners in the state, Omipidan had sought to justify the decision of the governor of Osun to appoint caretaker members to run local government councils instead of conducting the election, saying his boss didn’t violate any law.
Reacting through a statement signed by the State Coordinator of DV, Emmanuel Olowo, and made available to Osun Defender, the group said the action of the governor was illegal no matter how hard Omipidan and other officials of the state try to justify the move.
Part of the statement reads, “It becomes very necessary that we correct and caution some officials of Osun State Government particularly, the Chief Press Secretary, CPS, to the Governor, Ismail Omipidan, on his deliberate misinformation over the unlawful setting up of the Local Government Caretaker Committee by Gov Isiaka Oyetola through the instrumentality of the Osun State House of Assembly.
“No matter the purpose their misinterpretation of the constitution is to serve, setting up of caretaker committee remains an aberration to the Nigerian Constitution. It is illegal, unconstitutional and to the extent of its inconsistency with the Nigerian constitution, it remains null and void.
The Supreme Court has made several judicial pronouncements on the illegality of any governor or, and the state assembly to set up an unelected, undemocratic, caretaker committee, a contraption unknown to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) The Supreme Court re-emphasized its position on the illegality of caretaker committee in its recent judgment against Oyo State Governor and the State House of Assembly in the case filed by ALGON Oyo State.
“It is elementary knowledge of the law that the Nigerian Constitution supersedes any state or local government law, and it takes superiority over any other law that is inconsistent with it.
“Supremacy of the Nigeria constitution is never and cannot be in doubt.
“We reassert our position that the setting up of undemocratic caretaker committees to run the affair local government in Osun state is illegal, undemocratic, and unconstitutional.
The group concluded by maintaining that it will use all instrumentality of the law to ensure that elections are conducted into the various councils.
“Democracy Vanguard shall continue to agitate for the conduct of a free, fair, and credible local government election through all available measures permitted by the law.”
