Local Government Chairmen sacked by Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state on Monday resumed their various duties as chairmen in their respective offices.
DAILY POST gathered that Makinde shortly after his inauguration in May last year, sacked the chairmen and asked them to hand over to the most senior career officer in their respective councils.
Our correspondent recalls that the council chairmen were elected during the May 12 local government election conducted during the administration of Governor Abiola Ajimobi.
The sacked Chairmen, however, at the weekend, vowed to resume their offices today after about eight months of legal battle with the state government. The sacked Chairmen on Monday resumed their various offices as promised.
Reports from all the 33 local government areas and 35 Local Council Development Areas showed that majority of the chairmen resumed their various offices though, there were reports of violence in some of the councils.
In Oluyole Local Government Area, Prince Ayodeji Abass-Aleshiloye resumed his office and held a prayer with some of his followers.
The same things were recorded in other local government areas such as Ibadan South East where Mr Bimbo Omiyale resumed his office.
Reports from Ibadan East Local Council Development Area, Ogbomoso Central Local Council Development Area, Iseyin Local Government Area, Itesiwaju Local Government Area and Ibarapa Central also indicated that the chairmen in these councils resumed their various offices.
DAILY POST gathered that there were reports of violence in Ibadan South East local government area, this made the Chairman in the council, Mr. Bimbo Omiyale to leave immediately.
Abass-Aleshiloye who is the Chairman of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), insisted th
at he and his members were ready to cooperate with Makinde to move the state forward at the grassroots level.
Abass-Aleshiloye who addressed journalists at ALGON office in Ibadan, the state capital on Monday, maintained that he and his members had employed all peaceful and legal options to reclaim their mandates eight months after they were sacked.
He added that their resolved to resume their offices was premised on supreme court judgement which declared that no Governor has the right to unjustly dissolve elected chairmen.
Abass-Aleshiloye who urged local government workers to resume back to their various offices urged the people of the state to remain law-abiding and not to panic. He alleged that all efforts to meet with the Governor by the dissolved chairmen have been meeting brick walls.
Abass-Aleshiloye added that it was unfortunate that it is only Makinde that remained adamant in the return of the local government chairmen in his state, stressing that local government chairmen who were illegally sacked in Ogun, Ekiti, Kwara have been returned.
“We have resumed, though NULGE (local government workers) members did not come today. We talked to the people, we held a prayer and we urged people to be law and abiding. Till the them that I left, there was no problem.
“But, we just heard that there were some hoodlums that are going around to unleash violence on the people. But, we assured people that we will be peaceful. By law, I am the chairmen of Oluyole Local Government Area.
“I am still compiling the report, we have majority of our people that resumed today, but there are some elements that want to attack us. We have instances in Ekiti, Kwara, Ogun where the sacked Chairmen have been returned. Whey will Oyo state be different?
“This is a self-inflicted pains on the people of Oyo state. For almost 8 months, we have not been in the office, we waited and we are law-abiding people. Makinde has never called us. We must finish our tenures. We have spent one year in the office before he came and we must finish our tenures”.
