The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Osun State, Jimi Bada, has clarified that the Court of Appeal did not reinstate the sacked local government chairmen, contrary to claims made by the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Speaking at a press briefing in Osogbo on Tuesday, Bada stated that the appellate court in Akure merely struck out the originating summons filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) at the Federal High Court.

He stressed that the ruling did not overturn the initial judgment that nullified the 2022 local government election.

I want to confirm to you straight away that the Court of Appeal, Akure, did not go into the merit of the appeal launched by the APC before them. Their finding was just that there was no cause of action at the time PDP brought the suit against OSSIEC at the Federal High Court, he explained.

The only thing the Court of Appeal did was to strike out the originating summons filed by the PDP, and that was all. Anybody can interpret the ruling how they want, but at no point did the court order the reinstatement of any sacked local government chairman.

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The ruling has sparked a fresh round of controversy between the state government and the opposition APC, with both parties interpreting the judgment differently.

While the PDP-led administration insists that the sack of the council bosses remains valid, the APC argues that the ruling automatically restores them to office.

In a counter-statement, the National Secretary of the APC, Dr. Ajibola Basiru, criticised the Justice Commissioners position, describing it as an affront to the rule of law.

He insisted that the appeal judgment set aside the Federal High Courts decision and reinstated the dismissed chairmen.

This deliberate misrepresentation of the courts judgment exposes the Osun State Government as an enabler of illegality, Basiru said.

The Court of Appeal judgment considered all grounds of appeal raised in CA/AK/270/2022 and granted all the reliefs sought by the APC, including setting aside the Federal High Courts ruling and restoring the sacked local government councils.

He further argued that the only legal option available to the Osun State Government was to challenge the ruling at the Supreme Court rather than dispute its interpretation in the media.

Sodiq Lawal is a passionate and dedicated journalist with a knack for uncovering captivating stories in the bustling metropolis of Osun State and Nigeria at large. He has a versatile reporting style, covering a wide range of topics, from politics , campus, and social issues to arts and culture, seeking impact in all facets of the society.

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