The Osun State political space has been thrown into fresh controversy as the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) engaged in a war of words over alleged diversion of local government funds and conflicting interpretations of court rulings.
Speaking at a press briefing in Osogbo on Sunday, NULGE accused top federal government officials—including the Minister of Finance, the Accountant-General of the Federation, and the Attorney-General of the Federation—of illegally releasing statutory allocations for Osun’s 30 local government councils between March and September 2025 into accounts opened by APC chairmen and councillors earlier sacked by the courts.
According to the union, the funds were funneled into United Bank for Africa (UBA) accounts, despite subsisting court orders and the existence of official council accounts managed by career officers.
“Paying local government allocations into privately opened and illegal bank accounts of politicians is unbelievable, bizarre, and unprecedented in the history of public administration in Nigeria,” NULGE said in its statement.
The union reminded the Federal Government that the Federal High Court had, on May 15, 2025, ordered all parties to maintain the status quo—a ruling acknowledged by the Central Bank of Nigeria. It also emphasized that both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal had effectively removed the APC chairmen and councillors from office.
“The Attorney-General cannot assume the role of the Supreme Court by setting aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal. He is not above the law,” the union warned, while accusing unnamed political actors of plotting to destabilize the state.
NULGE, however, urged residents to remain calm and continue supporting Governor Ademola Adeleke’s peace and development agenda.
But in a sharp response, the APC dismissed the allegations as “a pack of lies and deliberate misrepresentation.” In a statement signed by its Director of Media and Information, Kola Olabisi, the party insisted that the February 10, 2025 Court of Appeal judgment, which reinstated APC council chairmen and councillors, remained valid.
“It is not the duty of NULGE to interpret any court judgment,” the APC said, denying that allocations were diverted into personal accounts. The party stressed that “the said federal allocations were paid directly into the local government councils’ accounts,” and warned NULGE against acting as a “political arm of the PDP.”
Reacting, the Osun PDP welcomed what it described as an “admission” by the APC that the funds had been released. In a statement by its chairman, Sunday Bisi, the ruling party challenged the APC to disclose the specific accounts and signatories linked to the allocations.
“Statutory officers across the 30 local governments, including the state accountant-general, the auditor-general for local governments, and the Ministry of Local Government Affairs, were unaware of any payments. This suggests clear diversion of funds,” the PDP alleged.
The party described the development as “the greatest heist in the history of Nigeria” and warned that insults directed at NULGE would not erase the demand for accountability.
Reaffirming Governor Adeleke’s commitment to transparency and accountability, the PDP vowed that “no amount of blackmail will derail this administration.”
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