Osun State chapters of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate, Adedamola Adebayo have expressed contrasting interpretations of the Supreme Court ruling on the issue of withheld local government allocations.
This is as each claimed victory while issuing warnings to their supporters and opponents.
These reactions were expressed in separate statements made available to DAILY POST on Saturday in Osogbo.
The Osun APC through its Chairman, Tajudeen Lawal, said the party applauded the Supreme Court’s judgement, describing it as a reinforcement of the July 2024 ruling which affirmed financial autonomy for local government councils in the state.
The party said the verdict again nullified the actions of the alleged illegally elected PDP chairmen and councillors.
The APC, however, criticised the Osun State House of Assembly for passing the Local Government Accounts Administration Bill, 2025, shortly after the judgement was delivered.
It described the move as “unconstitutional and an attempt to undermine the court’s decision.”
The statement read, “The bill is unconstitutional and a failed attempt to scuttle the Supreme Court’s judgment in July 2024 over financial autonomy for the local governments, which was by implication reinforced today in another Supreme Court judgement where the Osun State Government and ‘sit-at-home appointed chairmen and councillors’ lost gallantly.”
The party questioned the speed with which lawmakers passed the bill, alleging that the legislators were “ignited by the fire of legal battle they ignorantly and maliciously initiated.”
It insisted that the rule of law had prevailed with the latest verdict.
The APC which added that the legislation was intended to weaken the authority of local government chairmen and councillors reinstated under its platform stressed that the bill will not stand and urged members of the public to hold the lawmakers accountable.
It warned the Assembly against measures it claimed were designed to mislead residents.
The party also alleged that some individuals were impersonating members of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, describing the act as criminal.
The statement added, “In case the ‘sit-at-home’ purported local government council chairmen do not have an adviser, recourse may be made to knowledgeable people to educate them that their useless suit at the Supreme Court was struck out.”
Meanwhile, the PDP governorship candidate for the 2026 Osun election, Adebayo, also welcomed the ruling but offered a different interpretation of its implications.
Adebayo, who secured 919 votes in the party’s primary held on Tuesday, said the verdict paved the way for PDP-elected chairmen to assume office.
In a statement issued in Osogbo, he urged party members to celebrate the judgement peacefully and cautioned them against any form of lawlessness.
He noted that the party had maintained decorum throughout the legal proceedings and should continue to do so.
Adebayo said, “We received the verdict of the Supreme Court with joy as it eventually affirmed our position all the while. The PDP is the ultimate beneficiary of the sound judgement of the court and, by extension, those elected on the platform of the party should also celebrate this victory.”
He warned political opponents against violence and vowed to use legal means to ensure that PDP-elected council leadership assumed control of the local government areas without disruption.
The governorship candidate commended the discipline displayed by PDP members since the case began, adding that such behaviour would contribute to the development expected from those elected to public office.
“I urge our supporters to remain committed to the party as the next election approached,” he said.
DAILY POST had reported that the Supreme Court on Friday struck out a suit filed by the Osun State Government seeking to compel the Federal Government to release withheld allocations to local governments in the state.
A seven-member panel ruled six to one that the suit lacked legal competence.
Earlier reports indicated that both the PDP and APC-aligned Association of Local Government of Nigeria, ALGON members had claimed victory following the ruling, each welcoming the court’s decision.