Osun Assembly threatens legal action over alleged LG fund diversion by CBN
By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –
The Osun State House of Assembly has warned the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) against disbursing local government funds to unauthorized individuals, vowing to challenge any such move through legal and constitutional means.
During its plenary on Thursday, the Assembly passed a resolution condemning any attempt to operate local government accounts through individuals not recognized by law. It described such actions as unlawful and a diversion of public funds.
Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Adewale Olumide Egbedun, declared that only the duly elected chairmen and councillors from the February 22, 2025 election are legally recognized. Any payment processed through impostors, he said, would be null, void, and punishable.
The Assembly specifically warned the Osun State branch of the CBN against processing local government accounts with individuals whose elections were nullified and Certificates of Return withdrawn by OSSIEC, describing such moves as unconstitutional.
According to the resolution, only the Director of Finance and the Director of Administration and General Services, in conjunction with the elected chairman and Head of Local Government Administration (HLGA), are authorized to operate local government accounts under the 2025 Guidelines for Local Government Administration.
It further stated that any substitution of these career officers with unauthorized persons constitutes an illegal diversion of funds and the House will resist and reverse such infractions using all legal means available.
The Assembly reaffirmed its exclusive recognition of the democratically elected chairmen and councillors from the 22nd February, 2025 election as the only lawful representatives of the people at the grassroots level.
Lawmakers also called on the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Minister of Finance to release all outstanding allocations only through the legitimate and lawful local government accounts.
