Linking Oyetola to LG funds is malicious, minister’s aide slams Osun Assembly
By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –
Dr. Bolaji Akinola, Special Adviser to the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr. Adegboyega Oyetola, has dismissed allegations by the Osun State House of Assembly linking the minister to the control or disbursement of local government funds in Osun State, describing the claims as false and malicious.
Reacting to a statement credited to the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Adewale Egbedun, Akinola said the attempt to associate Oyetola with the administration or disbursement of local government funds was reckless propaganda aimed at distracting the public from the state government’s own failures.
He noted that all local governments in Nigeria have financial autonomy and are beyond the control of any individual or entity, including the state government. He stressed that the minister has no constitutional or statutory role in local government finance and has neither issued directives to banks nor interfered in the running of local councils.
Akinola also dismissed as false and intellectually dishonest the repeated description of the chairmen as “illegal,” stressing that they were duly elected, reinstated by a superior court of record, and remain fully protected by binding judicial pronouncements. He said no amount of political rhetoric can nullify or undo those judgments.
He added that the Osun State Government has instituted no fewer than twelve separate court cases on the matter, creating administrative bottlenecks for which the government must now wait for judicial outcomes rather than resorting to propaganda.
Akinola further accused the Adeleke administration of instigating and sponsoring an eleven-month strike by local government workers, which paralysed the councils in an attempt to frustrate their autonomous functioning and create a false narrative.
He condemned what he described as deliberate and calculated misinformation being circulated by the Speaker, accusing him of misrepresenting settled legal issues to mislead the public.
The aide also cautioned Egbedun to exercise restraint in his public statements, particularly against making reckless or insulting remarks about the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, warning that public office does not confer immunity from responsibility or consequences.
