*Oyo state: Impunity Incorporated?*

Tunde Olaore

For several months now, residents of Oyo state have been denied the right to have themselves led by their elected Local Government Council Chairmen at the grassroot. The dissolution of Local Councils by Governor Seyi Makinde was his first use of his new found executive powers delegated to a yet to be appointed Chief of Staff who made the announcement of ignominy.

Since then it has been the proverbial “ara ko ro okun, ara ko ro adiye” ( the rope the chicken landed on is not at rest, neither is the chicken perching at rest). This has been the cat and mouse game Oyo state government appears to have embarked upon in its bid to ensure the status quo of disregard to court judgments remained.

First the claim for the reckless dissolution of elected Council Chairmen by Governor Makinde was his claim that their election was conducted contrary to a court injunction. When he was challenged whether he had transformed his executive powers to Judicial powers as to make him pronounce judgement on an election without a court order nullifying same, the state rushed to court to later file an appeal against the Judgment obtained by the Council Chairmen against Oyo state government restraining their removal from office, even though that is not, and cannot be an appeal against the substantive Supreme court decision of Governor of Ekiti V Olubunmo now haunting all Governors in illegality. Yet the stae government has not reversed its decision.

Secondly, Governor Makinde dissolved the State Independent Electoral Commission undertaking to pay them off without a care as to the impropriety of his offer if he were to pay statutory officials he illegally removed for the 2 to 3 remaining years of their fixed tenure, for services yet to be rendered. A second level of legalizing illegality birthed in Oyo state by a desperate junta wielding executive power recklessly against institutions and the constitution it swore to uphold. Again the state Governor has not reversed himself despite the glaring illegality.

Thirdly, residents woke up to the joke of being informed by the Seyi Makinde administration that the Governor was going to appoint Caretaker chairmen to the local councils. Shocking as it is to the informed especially in a state where its Attorney General is a Professor of law, the Governor and his House of Assembly again without recourse to extant judgments and specific orders against such caretaker appointments made both by the Supreme court and the Oyo state high court, forced through their bitter unconstitutional pill of Caretakers, down the throat of the people yet came out with smiles that it was for the good of all. Since when did impunity become necessary for the public good? Former president Mugabe about twice amended his constitution to have multiple terms and transform as a life president claiming it was for the public good too. Such is the list of despots this “once thought to be respectable gentlemanly Governor” has now enlisted himself.

The band of the elected Chairmen under their association ALGON have not taken this on the chin, but have at every turn put out warnings, made pronouncements challenged the government both in court and the court of public opinion which appears to have finally got to the ears of federal institutions. Incidentally Governor Makinde was not alone in this ill-advised journey.

The deposed Imo former Governor, Emeka Ihedioha, Governor Fayemi and a few others had initially summarily removed the Chairmen they met in office, but the said states retraced their steps once they were confronted with the decision of the Supreme court (although Ihedioha did not obey until he himself was removed by the same Supreme court). It seems in Ihedioha’s case he sowed the wind and reaped the whirlwind. This path however appears to be the one being toed by Governor Governor Makinde now with his government’s latest act of impunity. Is this now the new normal in Oyo state?

We have all read the recent letter issed by the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami SAN to the Attorney General of Oyo state requesting he advises his Government to comply with the pronouncement of the Supreme court by removing the contrived Caretakers and restoring the elected Council chairmen. Whether he has so advised the Governor and his advice declined may not be made public,but the flurry of rage seen in the responses from PDP spokespersons, goverment loyalists, and serving members of the Seyi Makinde administration clearly shows the thinking of the Governor and his team and their quest to rather disparage the messenger, perhaps as the correctness of the message is incapable of a rebuttal, except by another demonstration of state impunity in disobedience.

The talking point of the state government seems now to be ‘the Attorney General of the Federation can only advise the Federal government, not state Governments so he should basically mind his own business’. Others even were more daring in ignorance, borrowing Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu, Governor of Ondo state’s response to the AG Federation on the ‘Amotekun’ issue that ‘the federal Attorney General does not make law in his office nor is he a court of law’. Those however ignorantly echoing the Arakunrin of Ondo, and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria do so not recognizing that on the Amotekun issue,there is no subsisting court pronouncement on it and the AGF’s comment may at best be advisory.

Whereas on the illegal removal of council chairmen by Governors, there is an extant and unappealable decision of the highest court of the land, the Supreme court and all the AGF did as any responsible occupier of the office of Attorney General should do, was to direct the states to ensure that they abide by the pronouncement of the Supreme court in their states. If politicians talk ignorantly about the law, it is understandable, but for lawyers it is almost unpardonable.

Even though the professor Attorney General in Oyo state has made no public statement on these serial illegality of the government in which he is serving, his colleague in the state cabinet and a former Attorney General under Governor Lam Adesina, Chief Bayo Lawal attempted a justification recently in the press restating the government position that the local government elections were allegedly conducted in defiance of a court injunction. In Bayo Lawal’s understanding, this distinguishes the Oyo LG crisis from the situation covered by the Supreme court judgment.

Not only is Bayo Lawal selling us a dummy, he is attempting to twist the facts. Firstly one of his successors and the immediate past Attorney General in the state, Mr Seun Abimbola had debunked the Seyi Makinde refrain of the election being held in defiance of a local government election. Not only did he rebuke the press echoing what he called a blatant lie against the judiciary, he threw a challenge at those claiming so to produce a copy of the said injunction if it exists. Uptill now no one has been bold enough to produce such imaginary injunction upon which the continuing illegality has been hinged.

Abimbola stated that the supposed injunction and case were dismissed by the federal court days before the local government elections held, putting paid to that talking point as a justification for illegality. It therefore beats one’s imagination for Bayo Lawal, Governor Makinde’s Commissioner for Special duties and a former Attorney General of Oyo state himself to still be backing a lie against the constitution, against the Supreme court and the Nigerian judiciary all in a bid to continue a reckless journey. To the credit of the current Attorney General in Oyo state, he has not echoed the lie.

Incidentally some other state Attorneys General have indicated receiving the similar letter from the AGF as the one served on Oyo state, which again validates the fact that the AGF was only acting his role to inform his colleagues in the states to advise their Governors to comply with the Supreme court decision, the same way he is bound to advise the President to comply with Supreme court decisions against the federal government too. It thus appears that Oyo state government in a bid to hang the dog are merely trying to call it a bad name.

The AGF has done nothing out of place here, only Oyo state and any other state guilty of same illegality are in the wrong and trying to deflate the heat from the office of the Federal Attorney General by the letter served on them and copied the Inspector General of Police, DSS, EFCC, NFIU. This perhaps points to the direction of implementation against those who may choose to disregard the Supreme court pronouncement.

They may be doing so at their own peril of criminal prosecution for any act done by the illegal caretakers or other persons in state governments aiding and abetting this illegality in their states.
For now, Oyo state, the pacesetter state leads impunity against local government administration in Nigeria, and is institutionalizing it at the highest level with a disregard of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

It is hoped that good reason will prevail in the heart of the Governor of Oyo state, and his cabinet and reverse himself on this protracted crisis bedevilling the third tier of government in Oyo state.

Olaore writes from Felele, Ibadan.