It has gotten to a point of no return for the governor. The only option left for him is to come down from his high horse and do the needful. He must eat the humble pie! His Excellency, the governor of Oyo State, Engr. Oluseyi Makinde for the first time in five years made a public confession. “I sacked the ex-local government bosses because I thought their election was unconstitutional”.
Since May 7, 2021 when the case was decided in favor of the sacked Local Government officials in the Supreme Court, the government of Oyo State has been taken every steps wrong in order to evade justice. But now, they have reached the dead end of the legal tussle. They can no longer hide behind their fingers. They delayed, they bragged, they lied, they barked and they bullied but all to no avail. Right now, His Excellency, governor Seyi Makinde has to soft-pedal and toe the line of peace.
The status of the case at this moment is that it is awaiting hearing on June 17 , 2024 courtesy the appeal filed in the apex court at the instance of the Oyo State government. But they know inside of them that they are insufficiently equipped with material facts to prosecute the case any further. They are conscious of the fact that they lack the audacity and the effrontery to face the jury at the Supreme Court. They are already caught and entangled in the web of judicial game.
I have said it in countless numbers of time that their lawyers will not come back from their judicial voyage to the Supreme Court unwounded. It is like the case of a dog going into the den of lions to seek for justice. Never doubt the outcome, it will be bloody. Hence, they know this and therefore choose to make a tactical withdrawal.
The sacked Local Government Officials and their legal team have pulled the rug from the feet of the state government. They have stretched them beyond their elastic limit even though this was not achieved on a platter of gold. It actually came with a lot of sacrifices. But the prices paid actually worth it. At least, it deepens our democracy.
How on earth can a lawyer that is worth his salt be seeking for a retrial or review of a case already decided about three years ago by the Supreme Court? Moreso, it was a judgement that was neither written in Latin nor in Greek, but in clear language of English. Those lawyers that sought for such a review in the past were summarily punished by my lords in the Supreme Court.
But to any discerning mind, the objectives of their principal, that is, Mr Governor is very clear. He wanted to waste time as much as possible on one hand, and to rubbish the value of the monetary entitlements of the the beneficiaries on the other hand.
And give it to him, Seyi Makinde to a great extent has accomplished his objectives. Take it or leave it, valuable time has been wasted on the needless additional litigations after the Supreme Court judgement of 2021. Equally, the economic reality of today has devalued the naira to a ridiculous extent, at least by over 500%.
But kudos to the ex- Chairmen and their Councilors for being resolute in their quest for justice. They never retreated, they never surrendered and they never wavered. Despite the efforts mischievously made by the Oyo State government to blackmail them, they resisted to the fullest the executive rascalities obviously perpetrated to silence them.
At a point in time, the song in the mouth of the state government was that late Senator Abiola Ajimobi never conducted any Local Government Election. At another point, they began to chase shadows by looking for trump up charges to discredit and nail the coffin of the ex- Chairmen. But the more they look, the less they see. What this implies is that truth is ever constant.
For the reason best known to the governor, last Saturday, he chose the occasion of the burial service organized for the late mother of the immediate past Minister of Youths and Sports, Chief Sunday Dare at Ogbomoso Baptist Church to make the announcement. “No more war!”, the governor said . This could be deliberate as His Excellency might wish to seek for forgiveness of sin in the presence of the Lord.
In fact, a mild drama ensued when His Excellency spotted the former Algon Chairman, Prince Ayodeji Abass Aleshinloye accompanied by a couple of former Chairmen inside the church and exchanged pleasantries with him. A few minutes later he took the microphone and jocularly asked for the whereabout of one of his tormentors-in-chief on this struggle of debt recovery.
“Where is Aleshinloye? I saw him just now”, the governor quipped. “We are no longer fighting o. I signed N2 Billion to pay the sacked Local Government Officials just yesterday. When I came in 2019, I sacked them because I thought that the election that produced them was unconstitutional”, the governor announced to the congregation.
What a place to score a political point! What a time to confess the truth! What a manner to make peace after a long daggers drawn battle! I’m sure that the N2 Billion is not meant exclusively for Prince Ayodeji Abass Aleshinloye and his colleagues Chairmen alone. Over 800 people will share the money including the cost of recovering the debt and other sundry expenses.
In fact, it has been a long and tedious walk to justice. However, the question on the lips of the beneficiaries now is, why making part payment again? After all the garnishee order of the Federal High Court Abuja actually trapped more than the total debt of N3.4 Billion Naira in the First Bank Account of the state government.
The representatives of the sacked Local Government Officials at the negotiation table still have a lot more to do. It remains a balance of N1.4 Billion to be paid by state government to finally liquidate the debt. Therefore, they must be very cautious of the agreement they strike with Governor Seyi Makinde. When it comes to making gentleman agreements, Seyi Makinde is very difficult, and not to be trusted. He can be deceitful and he can be too clever by half.
Therefore, once bitten, twice shy!!!
B. Aderemi Ogundele
(Jagunmolu)
