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The Oyo State chapter of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) has accused the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state of misinforming the public on the substance of the Oyo State High Court ruling given on Tuesday by Justice Ladiran Akintola over the dissolution of the Local Government and LCDAs by the state governor, Seyi Makinde.
The court on Tuesday refused to grant the motion requesting the enforcement of the May 6 judgement which barred the state governor and the House of Assembly from removing local government chairmen. The judge, granting the stay of execution sought by the state government, said the enforcement can not commence until the determination of the appeal already launched by the state government.
While members of the PDP in the state celebrated the ruling, the sacked LG bosses, under the aegis of ALGON, stated that the stay of execution granted by the judge does not nullify the May 6 judgement it obtained.
A statement signed by the group’s chairman, Prince Ayodeji Abass-Aleshinloye, said: “To set the record straight, the judgement of Oyo State High Court delivered on the 6th May, 2019 affirming three(3) years tenure of the local government and which also nullified the sections of the Oyo State Local Government Laws, which empowers the Governor and the State House of Assembly has not been stayed or set aside because it is only the Court of Appeal that can do so.
“The stay of execution cannot be granted by the Oyo State High Court on its earlier judgement which is declaratory in nature but only affect the committal proceedings pending before the same court against the Chief of Staff to the Governor of Oyo State, Chief Bisi Ilaka and the Executive Governor of Oyo State, His Excellency, Engr. Seyi Makinde and not the subsisting judgement which cannot be stayed because of his declaratory nature.
“The PDP propaganda on the stay of execution is to further perpetrate the illegality already commenced by this administration since his assumption of office.
The statement added that the judgment obtained by the ALGON is valid, sacrosanct and subsists until set aside by the Court of Appeal”.
It added: “We therefore urge His Excellency to be patient for the outcome of his appeal at the Court of Appeal because to do otherwise, on the misconceived , misinterpreted purported stay of execution will amount to assault on our judiciary, which is also capable of rendering the said appeal pending at the Court of Appeal nugatory.
“We, therefore call the attention of the general public to the fact that the status quo remains, the judgement of the Oyo State High Court to the effect that the governor and the Oyo State House of Assembly cannot dissolve the local government stands.
“It is on this note that we urge His Excellency, Engr. Seyi Makinde not to listen to the sycophants, political jobbers and power mongers who may want to mislead him because the interest of the local government chairmen and that of the governor are in tandem for the betterment of good people of Oyo State.
“The only way to move our state forward is to subscribe to the rule of law and we urge His Excellency, Engr. Seyi Makinde to march his words on his promise to obey the court order with actions.
“We wish to assure the people of our dear state that we all have fought bigger tyrants in the past, and this one also will come to pass. We remain committed to defending grassroots democracy, rule of law, peace and good governance in Oyo state.”