Ademola Adeleke, governor of Osun, said the local government election in the state has been very peaceful.
The governor spoke on Saturday morning after casting his ballot in Ede north local government area.
“A few minutes ago, I carried out my democratic duty by casting my vote at my polling unit in Ede. I commend the good people of Osun for maintaining a peaceful and orderly atmosphere at polling units across the state and encourage everyone to exercise their democratic right,” Adeleke wrote on X.
“Local government elections are the closest to the grassroots, and getting it right starts with electing the right leaders. Together, we will make Osun great.”
The local government election across all 30 LGAs and 323 wards in the state has been trailed by violence, controversies and litigations.
BACKGROUND
On Monday, violence broke out at some LG secretariats in Osun after a clash between supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and those of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Six persons were reportedly killed during the clash, including Remi Abbas, a former chairman of Irewole LGA.
The crisis erupted after the sacked APC LG chairpersons attempted to return to office, claiming to have been reinstated by the court.
The PDP claimed that the February 10 judgment of the court of appeal in Akure, Ondo state, did not reinstate the sacked chairpersons and councillors elected in 2022, while the APC insisted it did.
On Thursday, Lateef Fagbemi, the attorney-general of the federation (AGF) and minister of justice, advised Adeleke to direct the state electoral commission to put the election on hold.
Fagbemi said the ousted LGA chairpersons must be reinstated since the court of appeal had dismissed the judgment of the lower court that sacked them.
However, Adeleke said the election would be held as scheduled.
Subsequently, some political parties, including the APC and Labour Party, withdrew from the election, saying participating in the exercise would contradict an appeal court’s ruling.
The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) also called for the suspension of the LG election over a likelihood of violence and security threats.
On Friday, the Osun state high court in Osogbo ordered the State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) to conduct the local government election.
