Elected Local Government Chairmen and Councillors in Osun State have formally presented a certified true copy (CTC) of the June 13, 2025, Appeal Court judgment to the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), urging the Federal Government to recognize and enforce their electoral victory.
Acting through their legal representatives, MIKE OZEKHOME & CHAMBERS, the elected officials submitted the judgment to the Office of the Attorney General via a letter dated June 23, 2025, which was acknowledged by the Federal Ministry of Justice on June 24, 2025.
The judgment in question dismissed the appeal filed by chairmen and councillors elected under the All Progressives Congress (APC) during the controversial 2022 local government elections. It instead upheld the legality of the local government elections conducted by the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) in February 2025, under the administration of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
According to the letter signed by Prof. Mike Ozekhome (SAN), a detailed legal account of the dispute was provided, tracing the origin of the matter from the Federal High Court, Osogbo. Two suits—FHC/OS/CS/94/2022 (filed by the PDP) and FHC/OS/CS/103/2022 (filed by the Allied Peoples Party, APP), challenged the validity of the 2022 elections, citing gross irregularities and statutory breaches.
Ozekhome noted that the two judgments, now affirmed by the Appeal Court, render the 2022 elections null and void and validate the February 2025 elections.
Singling out the suit instituted by the Allied Peoples Party (APP), he emphasised the ruling of the court as follows;
“The election into local government councils across Osun State held on the 15th of October 2022, pursuant to the notice of election issued on the 15th of August 2022, is hereby declared unconstitutional, invalid, null, and void for violation of the Constitution and breach of Sections 28, 29, 32, 98, and 150 of the Electoral Act, 2022.”
“All persons or individuals occupying offices in the state local government councils by virtue of the said election are accordingly sacked from holding such offices.”
On the two separate appeals made by the APC challenging the FHC judgement, the court of appeal dismissed the earlier trial court judgement which was in favor of the PDP in CA/AK/270/2022 on the ground that the PDP’s suit as instituted was speculative, having been filed prematurely at a time when notice of the said election had not yet been issued by OSSIEC.
However, Prof. Ozekhome asserted that “The Court of Appeal in the said CA/AK/270/2022 never made any consequential order for the reinstatement of the APC Chairmen/Councilors as it did not even pronounce on the propriety or otherwise of the election, it being a mere academic exercise. So, no such order exists till date.”
In support of his position, he went further to state that “the legal implication in the absence of any consequential order validating the election of the 30 APC Chairmen/Councilors in Appeal No. CA/AK/270/2022, is that the FHC’s judgement in the APP case which sacked and removed from office the 30 APC Chairmen/Councilors remains the extant and binding position of the law.”
“Similarly, in the second scenario, the same APC had appealed the judgment in the APP case in Appeal No. CA/AK/266M/2024. This appeal was abandoned by the APC and was eventually struck out by the Court of Appeal for want of diligent prosecution on the 13th of February, 2025,” he added.
To confirm the validity of the FHC judgement in APP case in suit FHC/OS/CS/ 103/2022 and “being aware of the danger posed by its abandonment of its appeal against the judgement until same be set aside, the APC ran back to the Court of Appeal and applied to relist the abandoned appeal, which had been struck out. This was a clear admission that no revalidation or reinstatement of the APC Chairmen/Councilors had ever been made by any court of law. This application was roundly dismissed by a majority decision of the Court of Appeal, Akure Judicial Division on the 13th of June, 2025” he submitted.
To prove the removal of all the 30 APC Chairmen/councillors and recognize the election of the 30 PDP Chairmen/councillors, Prof. Ozekhome highlighted the judgement of the Appeal Court on the 13th of June, 2025 as follows;
“In the said Appeal No. CA/AK/15/2025, the APC had sought to set aside the ruling of the Court of Appeal dated 13th January, 2025 in Appeal No. CA/AK/266M/2024, between Allied People Movement &Ors V. Action Peoples Party (APP) &Ors. It prayed the court for an order restoring/relisting Appeal No. CA/AK/266M/2024 which had been dismissed for want of diligent prosecution on 13th January, 2025.
“However, the Court of Appeal on 13th of June, 2025, dismissed this application in a unanimous decision with the lead ruling delivered by Hon. Justice Peter Chudi Obiorah, JCA. The Hon. Justice Oyebisi Folayemi Omoyele and Hon. Justice Hadiza Rabiu Shagari, JJCA, concurred. A copy of the said judgment is herewith attached as Annexure E.
“In dismissing the appeal, the intermediate court made some telling pronouncements that the Honourable Attorney General would find useful in getting those 30 APC impostors still forcibly occupying the LGCs secretariats to immediately vacate therefrom. The Court of Appeal in its ruling recognized the LG elections conducted on 22nd February, 2025, and won by the 30 PDP Chairmen/Councilors and Councillors. It held inter alia that: etc
Pointedly, he quoted page 16, paragraph 2 of the lead ruling delivered by His Lordship, Peter Chudi Obiorah, JCA, the Court held thus:
“Of course, the dismissal of the appeal means that there being no existing appeal against the Judgment of the lower court, the said judgment stands as the authority defining the state of affairs as it regards the status of the officers of the various Local Government Councils in Osun State”
Also, at page 32, paragraph 2 of the lead ruling delivered by His Lordship, Peter Chudi Obiorah, JCA, the court held that “The parties locked horns before the Federal High Court, Osogbo in Suit No.: FHC/OS/CS/ 103/2022 which was an action in respect of election into Local Government Councils in Osun State. The lower court delivered its judgment on 30th November, 2022 effectively nullifying the election into the Local Government Councils across Osun State and sacked all individuals occupying offices in the Local Government Councils by virtue of the said election.”
He also cited several excerpts from the June 13th Appeal Court judgement that affirmed the sacking of the APC Local Government Chairmen and also validating the local government election conducted by OSSIEC on February 22, 2025 as ordered by the Osun State High Court Ilesa on February 21st, 2022.
In conclusion, Prof. Ozekhome presented eight prayers to the AGF as follows;
i. Give effect to the decision of the Court of Appeal in A p p e a l No: C A / A K / 1 5 / 2 0 2 5 : A L L I E D P E O P L E MOVEMENT & 2 ORS V. ACTION PEOPLES PARTY (APP) &4 ORS, delivered on 13th June, 2025; and
ii. Refrain from endorsing any contrary position being pursued by the sacked APC Chairmen/Councilors which seeks to undermine and disobey the said ruling and other subsisting judgements;
iii. Rescind or withdraw your directive dated 2 6 t h March, 2025, which erroneously recognized the
iv. Rescind or withdraw your directive dated 26th March, 2025, which erroneously recognized the sacked APC Chairmen/Councilors and appeared to empower the CBN Governor to disobey court judgements and orders by paying allocation to the 30 illegal APC Chairmen.
v. Affirm the legitimacy of the current PDP Local Government Chairmen/Councilors duly constituted following the election constituted by OSSIEC on 22nd February, 2025
vi. Direct the appropriate Federal Government authorities including the Minister of Finance, Co- ordinating Minister of the Economy, the Accountant- General of the Federation and the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, to remit all arrears and current federal allocations due to the 30 Local Government Councils of Osun State to the validly constituted PDP Chairmen/Councilors of the Local Governments.
vii. Direct the appropriate Federal Government agents such as the Inspector-General of Police, the Director- General of the Department of State Services (DSS), the Chief of Army Staff, the Commandant-General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the Commissioner of Police, Osun State Police Command, the Osun State Director of the DSS, the Commandant of NSCDC,
Osun State, etc, to immediately withdraw from the 30 Local Government Council Secretariats which they have illegally occupied since February, 2025, in aid of the APC Local Government Chairmen/Councilors in clear breach of the law and peace of Osun State.
viii. Direct the above security agents to provide maximum security and protection for the PDP Chairmen/Councilors who were validly elected on 22d February, 2025, to enable them carry out their legitimate and constitutionally vested duties. This has become urgently imperative to prevent a breach of the peace, law and order; and also to halt the ongoing undue harassment, intimidation and possible physical harm being brought to bear on the legitimate PDP Chairmen/Councilors by the sacked APC Chairmen/Councilors and their agents.