OSUN State governor Ademola Adeleke suspended the Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) Segun Oladitan with immediate effect.
The governor also suspended six members of the electoral commission.
Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Tesleem Igbalaye made this known in a statement on Monday, November 28.
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The statement said the suspension was based on several petitions bordering on financial impropriety, dereliction of duty, absenteeism and abuse of office against the commission’s chairman and its members.
“The Executive Governor of Osun State, Senator Adeleke, has directed the immediate suspension of the Chairman of OSIEC, Segun Oladitan, and … members of the Commission,” the statement said.
“This suspension is sequel to several petitions bothering on financial impropriety, dereliction of duty, absenteeism and abuse of office against the said Chairman and members of the Commission.”
The six suspended members are Yusuf Oyeniran, Suibat Adubi, Yinka Ajiboye, Abosede Omibeku, Dosu Gidigbi and Wahab Adewoyin.
The statement directed the commission’s secretary to take charge of affairs pending the outcome of investigation into the allegations against the suspended members.
In a related development, the governor has directed career heads of Local Government Areas and Area Councils Development Areas in the state to take charge of their councils from the sacked council chairmen and councillors.
The directive was disclosed in a statement issued by Adeleke’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, on Monday.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the directive is with immediate effect.
“Governor Adeleke also directed the most senior career heads across all the local government areas to take charge of their councils.
“This is in compliance with the judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo that sacked the council local government chairmen and councillors,” the statement issued by the governor’s spokesperson said.
NAN reports that Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel of the Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo, on Friday, November 25, declared the local government election conducted by the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) as null and void.
Justice Ayo-Emmanuel delivered the judgment based on a suit in which the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) asked the court to stop OSIEC from conducting the October 15 local government elections in Osun State.
The judge, in his judgment, stated that the local government election that was subsequently held by OSIEC was in contravention of sections 29 and 32 of the Electoral Act, 2022.
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