News
Osun LG workers dismiss APC chairmen’s deadline to resume
Local government officials in Osun State, on Monday, dismissed the 72-hour ultimatum to resume their duties, in the context of the ongoing conflict for dominance between the ruling Peoples Democratic Party and the opposition All Progressives Congress.
The local government chairmen elected under the APC banner in 2022 returned to their respective council secretariats, escorted by security forces.
Conversely, the newly elected chairmen from the PDP, who took office on Saturday, chose to remain absent from the secretariat, adhering to the advice given by Governor Ademola Adeleke on Sunday.
The PDP and the APC are currently embroiled in a tussle over the control of the LGs.
The APC relies on a recent Court of Appeal judgment, which reportedly nullified a high court judgment that removed the LG chairmen elected in 2022, shortly after their election.
While the APC clung to the appeal court verdict, the Adeleke-led PDP government went ahead to conduct a fresh LG poll on Saturday, which PDP candidates won, as the APC did not participate.
The political tussle over the LG has been bloody, with at least six lives lost.
The Nigeria Labour Congress and the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees have since ordered workers to stay away from the LG secretariats for fear of being caught in violent crossfire.
However, on returning to the secretariats on Monday, the APC LG chairmen gave the workers a 72-hour ultimatum to return to work, stating that calm had returned.
But the NLC leadership, in an interview with The PUNCH on Monday, rejected the ultimatum, saying workers would not resume.
Our correspondent, who checked Ifelodun LG headquarters in Ikirun, Olorunda LG in Igbona and Osogbo LG secretariat in Oke Baale, observed that the APC council officials had returned to the premises.
The entrance to the Osogbo LG secretariat was later shut.
Also, heavy security presence was also observed on major roads across the state with roadblocks mounted at the entrance to the secretariats by armed police operatives and those of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
Police presence was observed along Osogbo/Kwara Boundary Road, Osogbo/Ilesa Road, Gbongan/Osogbo Road, as well as, Osogbo Ibokun Road.
But business activities progress unhindered across the state capital.
Reviewing the situation during an interview with The PUNCH, an APC chieftain, Jamiu Olawumi, who served as the Special Adviser on Education to ex-governor Adegboyega Oyetola, said the chairmen and councilors had resumed in all the 30 LGs.
Olawumi also said the chairmen had directed local government staff members to return to their duty posts before Wednesday.
“All chairmen and councillors have resumed in all local governments and area councils in Osun State, including Irewole LG. The local governments and local council development areas are agog and full of life.
“The security is very tight; we have responsible police officers, DSS and Civil Defence. They are doing their jobs as directed by the Inspector General of Police.
“Most of the chairmen have issued press releases this morning that their workers should resume by Wednesday. After Wednesday, if they don’t resume, they will have their job determined. It is 72 hours ultimately,” he said.
But reacting to this, the Chairmen of the NLC, Osun State Chapter, Christopher Arapasopo, in a statement sent to our correspondent, said workers in the state would not intimidated by anyone.
Arapasopo said, “We directed our members to withdraw their services last week Monday, 27th February 2025 due to the political uproar bringing agitations and fear among our members working within the local government across Osun State.
“We cannot allow workers to be working in an atmosphere of insecurity. If not because we moved into action by directing our members at the local government to withdraw their services last week, when some unscrupulous elements forcefully broke into the Secretariat, which that action led to the crisis, what happened at the local government would have been more disastrous.
“As organised labour movement in the Osun State, we cannot watch our members be victims of any crisis at all. Their safety at work is highly important. A directive was also given today to affirm our earlier release, notifying all the local government workers that the earlier directive given to withdraw their services as a result of political upheaval within their workplaces still subsist, while they continue to pray for the State from their various homes, because their safety is our priority.
“The sacked chairmen lack the power to intimidate, threaten and instruct our members to resume work. We will not be intimidated by any desperate attempts to silence us. We urge all political parties and their members to abide by the rule of law. We insist on the rule of law to avoid a descent to anarchy.”
The NLC chairman called on President Bola Tinubu to look into the happenings in Osun and get the crisis resolved.
“We are calling on the father of Nigeria, that is President Bola Tinubu, to look into the happenings in Osun State as a father. We also call on all security agencies to ensure the safety of all lives and properties within Osun State Local Government and the masses.
“Osun State NLC, TUC and JNC remain resolute in our commitment to defending the rights and interest of Workers, Pensioners and the entire populace.”
News
Fuel, diesel prices will drop in Nigeria as crude oil slumps
Domestic prices of petrol and diesel are expected to decline following a sharp drop in global crude oil prices triggered by the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
As of Saturday morning, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude fell by 11 percent and 9 percent to $83.85 and $90.38 per barrel, respectively, down from about $100 per barrel.
The decline comes after Iran announced that the Strait of Hormuz has been fully reopened for vessel passage.
The development has begun to reflect in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum market, where depot marketers have slightly reduced fuel prices.
Petrol prices at depots now range between N1,205 and N1,206 per litre— about N5 to N6 higher than the Dangote Refinery price of N1,200 per litre.
This pricing trend was observed among marketers such as Aiteo, Bono, and NIPCO.
Meanwhile, diesel prices at depots in Lagos, including Menj and Duport, stood at N1,775 per liter.
Market observers say the drop in crude oil prices has triggered panic selling among depot marketers.
Despite this, retail pump prices have remained unchanged as of filing this report, with petrol selling between N1,290 and N1,333 per litre, while diesel ranges from N1,850 to N1,900 per litre.
The President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association, Abubakar Maigandi, confirmed the development, noting that further reductions are likely if the downward trend in crude prices persists.
“We expect fuel prices to drop in the coming days if crude oil prices continue to decline.
Daily Post
News
Wife demands divorce from husband for being poor
An Area Court at Centre-Igboro, Ilorin, Kwara State, has dissolved the Islamic marriage between a couple, Toyin Ajibola and Bashirat Mohammed on grounds of lack of money.
The presiding judge, Hammad Ajumonbi, while delivering ruling said that even though Toyin did not want to divorce his wife, she still had the needed to move on not be left stranded.
He, dissolved their marriage and granted custody of the three children from their union to the wife.
The court also ordered the woman to observe the three months iddah (waiting) period before remarrying.
Ajumonbi ordered Toyin to be responsible for the feeding of their children.
“The defendant should have unrestricted access to their children, while the plaintiff should always make their children available any time the defendant requested to see them,” the judge said.
Earlier, Bashirat had applied for divorce saying that she was tired of her marriage to her husband due to paucity of fund and her husband’s irresponsibility.
“I want the court to grant me divorce so that I can have rest of mind,” she said.
The husband, however, told the court that he was still interested in his wife even though he was financially handicapped.
“I have been trying hard to get money to feed my family, but couldn’t.
“It is so painful that I can’t get money to visit her and the children when they left home,” he said.
News
Angry Ex-Senate president, Saraki slams Kwara gov, says “you never completed secondary sch education”
Ex-Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has described as a “desperate ploy by a drowning politician” the move by Kwara State Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, to initiate a case of criminal culpability against him over the Offa robbery incident of 2018 “which I know nothing about”.
While describing the criminal case as “dirty politics taken too far and too low”, Saraki warned Abdulrazaq to desist from this despicable act of using the Offa robbery incident as a weapon anytime he came under political pressure over his poor policy conception and failure to live up to expectations as a governor of a state known as the State of Harmony.
Ordinarily, my attitude to this insidious move by the incumbent Governor of Kwara State to initiate a case of criminal liability against me in the unfortunate incident of armed robbery which happened in Offa community eight years ago should be to shrug it off and say that we will meet in court since I know I have nothing to do with the incident or any other crime for that matter.
“However, I have been inundated with calls from many well-meaning Nigerians who were surprised by this turn of events. Thus, for the benefit of the general public, let me categorically state that I have nothing to do directly or indirectly with any case of armed robbery or any criminal matter, whatsoever. The Offa robbery incident was designed under the Buhari administration with the connivance of some individuals from Kwara State as an instrument of blackmail to seize political power from our group in 2019.
“The case was investigated by the police team from the office of the Inspector General of Police. However, following the investigation, in two separate legal advices dated June 22nd, 2018, and August 23rd, 2018, the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) in the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) stated that there was no evidence directly or indirectly linking me to the robbery incident.
“ The DPP in his first legal advice stated that “For the Senate President and the Kwara State Governor, this office is unable to establish from the evidence in the interim report a nexus between the alleged offence and the suspects”.
In a second report, the DPP stated that “With regards to the Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, since there is no departure from the earlier findings in the interim report, this office is still unable to establish any prima facie case against him for any offences of criminal conspiracy, armed robbery and culpable homicide”.
Based on the DPP’s advice, four suspects were charged in court by the Kwara State Government. They were convicted at the trial court and the conviction was upheld by the appellate court. The matter is now before the Supreme Court.
Suddenly, the governor woke up after I granted my interview to Channels TV where I commented on the insecurity in the state and thought he could resurrect these baseless charges against his two predecessors. I noticed that in his propaganda plan to circulate his frivolous charges and other skewed documents as paid advertisements in the national newspapers, even before serving the defendants, he intentionally hid the DPP reports and other documents which put a lie to the charade he is perpetuating. These are deliberate efforts to mislead the media and induce them to give purchased publicity to the frame-up.
“Therefore, I am under no illusion that this case was a frivolous move and an abuse of court process to embarrass my person. My legal team will definitely meet this governor in court. I believe that Abdulrahman just feels that he could still use this case to harass and defame my person by abusing the judicial process. He had tried to induce the families of the victims to initiate civil litigations against the other respondents and me, but he seemed not to be making progress with that mischievous effort because the families backed out.
“I need to remind him that this vicious attack on my reputation because he enjoys the immunity of a governor is a huge joke on him. A sitting governor who is accusing his two immediate predecessors of armed robbery is only making a mockery of the institution. He is only taking the governorship of our dear state to the gutter.
This is an example of dirty politics taken too far and too low. He ought to know that nobody at the national or state level is buying his claim. He is the butt of a crude joke. Many of those involved in the plot to blackmail me with the Offa robbery case have since faced judgements of the law of karma. I do not doubt that this governor will end up the same way.
“One would have thought that a governor whose state has lost over 400 lives to banditry between January 2025 and March 2026, with over 100 others kidnapped in the worst cases of insecurity since its creation, would concentrate efforts and focus attention on taming the menace by getting the bandits arrested to face justice. No. He is fixated on filing frivolous and politically motivated charges against his predecessors.
This shows the dark mindset of the man who is the governor of Kwara State today. A man who emphasises dirty politics over development and security of life and properties of the citizenry. He started working on this plot immediately after my interview on Channels TV where I flayed his lack of capacity in tackling the security crisis in the state. He thought this case would erase his record as the governor with the worst cases of insecurity under his watch in the state’s history. It is an unenviable record he has sustained by his lack of capacity and ability to tackle serious issues of the state.
“This is a mere act of a desperate politician who is losing control in his party and knows that his days in governance are numbered.
It is the reason Nigerians should always take into consideration the level of education of those we elect into office. For a man who never completed secondary school education, it is difficult for him to appreciate the issues involved in any matter. His level of education is definitely affecting his judgement.
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