Olusola Oluokun, Chairman of Oyo East local government is the latest victim of the Oyo State House of Assembly disciplinary cudgel. But the latest disciplinary action against the chairman has also sparked conversation around the legality and constitutionality of the state lawmaker. Questions such as the essence of the legislative council across the 33 councils in addressing council chairmen administrative malfeasance and the legal basis the state legislature has in firing council leaders for misconduct and wrongdoing have dominated conversations.
Described as the right step in the right direction, Oluokun’s temporary removal ignited mixed reactions with critics heaving a sigh of relief. In particular, political observers in the state also noted that such disciplinary action will serve as deterrence to others. While suspending Oluokun, the House stated the sanction was necessary to preserve the sanctity of the office and frown at potential repeat of such indecent behavior. The Speaker, of Oyo State House Assembly, Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin had chimed that the House would not condone such indecent behavior. In a swift move, the House equally set up a committee to investigate the matter, pending which the Vice Chairman will act as Chairman. Retrospectively, Oluokun’s suspension makes it probably the fifth time council bosses have been punished and disciplined for running afoul of the law by the state lawmakers in the last five years.
In June 2023, ex-Irepo local government chairman, Hon. Lateef Sulaiman Adediran aka Santana became the first council boss to be removed from office – after serving a suspension for alleged misappropriation and diversion of funds. The Assembly had made the announcement of his removal following the presentation of the report of the Joint Committee on Local Government, Chieftaincy Matters and State Honors and Public Accounts, Finance, and Appropriation that investigated an allegation of “Running of Local Government with impunity”, leveled against the Chairman. The committee report added that the Honorable Adebo Ogundoyin-led Assembly concluded that the accused chairman was removed from office in line with Section 21 of the Local Government Law, 2001 as amended. In that same sitting, it directed the council’s Vice Chairman, Oyetunji Joel to immediately assume the position as the acting chairman.
Contrary to the allegations leveled against Hon. Santana, records showed that his removal had a strong political undertone. As the longest serving council chairman in the local government history, Hon. Santana has accumulated quite an impressive array of political capital and clout. In the 2015 governorship election, for instance, he was the running mate to Governor Seyi Makinde who was the flagbearer of the Social Democratic Party. Expectedly, the joint ticket couldn’t sail through as the political climate at that time was favorable to the All-Progressives Congress, under the late Abiola Ajimobi.
In essence, Makinde/Santana’s relationship cordially extended beyond 2015. However, the political reality of 2019 made it impossible to repeat the experiment of the previous election cycle. Instead, Governor Makinde settled for Engr. Abdulrauf Olaniyan, who incidentally hails from Igboho, the neighboring town to Kisi.
Still, the relationship between the Governor and Hon. Santana grew in leaps and bounds until the current Deputy Governor, Barr. Abdulraheem Adebayo Lawal came into the picture. Shortly after the 2023 governorship election, won by Governor Seyi Makinde, Hon. Santana went on a radio station to grant an explosive interview that would rock the boat of his political career. In that vitriolic interview which was transcribed and published by Oyoinsight, Hon. Santana had identified Barr. Bayo Lawal, then the elected Deputy Governor as the main architect behind PDP electoral misfortune in the council area.
Further, he accused the Deputy Governor and others of pocketing N15.1 million meant for the election, which significantly contributed to the loss of the party to the APC. Findings asserted that the radio bombshell was the chairman’s way of responding to allegations that he worked against ‘Seyi Makinde, in the election. In the end, Honorable Santana, a long-time ally of the Governor was yanked off his office for clashing with the Deputy Governor – leaving the state assembly to rubber stamp the political dogfight.
In a similar vein, the likes of Mrs. Oluwakemi Juliana Akanni former Chairperson of Olorunsogo local government, and Mr. Sheriff Adeojo have equally been suspended and reinstated by the state house of assembly for various infractions in office. On October 11, 2022, Hon. Akanni and Adeojo were reinstated by the Oyo State Assembly. The House had exonerated the duo and ordered their return back to office with immediate effect. While various petitions such as abuse of power were leveled against Hon. Akanni which prompted her suspension from office, the case of Hon. Adeojo differed: He was axed from office by the legislative council of the local government. In quashing the suspension, the state House of Assembly had noted that the (Ido legislative) House’s resolution of 9th August 2022 lacked merit and did not follow due process or procedure as provided under Section 20 of the Local Government Law, 2001 (amended).
A similar suspension fate also befell Mr. Sarafadeen Omirinde, Chairman of Saki Local Government Area on June 6, 2024, for alleged diversion of funds. Included in the allegations against him were gross misconduct, religious tolerance, anti-party activities, and unlawful diversion of the local government subvention. Although he was reinstated, the gale of suspension only pointed to the growing influence of the state assembly in addressing administrative misconduct in the council areas.
But the suspension of Hon. Olusola Oluokun by the House of Assembly has reignited the conversation around the legality and constitutionality of reliving council chairmen of their duties over various offenses by the state lawmaker. While Oluokun’s suspension came amid controversy that trailed his foreign trip, it was his conduct, captured in a short video clip that triggered the public criticism and condemnation of his behavior.
In the video, Mr. Oluokun, half-naked, with food on the table was seen praising his benefactor, while cursing his political adversaries. Tagged insensitive, unbecoming, and outrightly ridiculous, many believe the disciplinary action against the chairman was the right thing to do. But the question remains: what power does the legislative council have in checking the excesses of their bosses? For one, the legislative house has the legal backing to curtail the excesses of recalcitrant council chairman. Think of the Ido local government experiment under Mr. Sheriff Adeojo. It means a strong legislative house can suspend a chairman without fear of political persecution. The subtle deployment of Section 21 of the Local Government Law, 2001 as amended, by the House to oversee the affairs of the council areas seems to provide legal backing for the state legislative arm.
Apart from the legality of removing council bosses by law, one other factor that may influence their suspension comes from clashing with powerful local actors. As the case of Hon. Santana shows, anyone can be removed if they have enough political muscle in Ibadan to carry out their wishes. Section 7(1) of the constitution guarantees the establishment of local governments and requires state governments to ensure their existence. It also ensured that local government is structured to exercise all the powers of government, especially that of the Legislature and Executive. The overbearing nature of state government on local government affairs has robbed the system of its rightful place and position. State House of Assemblies only serves as rubber stamp to fulfil the wishes of the Governors and other power brokers.
OYO101 is Muftau Gbadegesin’s opinion about issues affecting the Oyo state and is published every Saturday. He can be reached via @GbadeTheGreat on X, muftaugbadegesin@gmail.com, and 09065176850.
