The Osun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party has urged European countries to impose a visa ban on the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, and the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola. The party accused both officials of being complicit in the alleged withholding of local government allocations meant for the state.
In a statement issued in Osogbo by its chairman, Sunday Bisi, the PDP alleged that Fagbemi and Oyetola played a role in the ongoing crisis surrounding local government administration in Osun by refusing to honour a Court of Appeal judgment that recognised PDP-elected chairmen and councillors. The party also claimed that federal funds due to local councils in the state had been withheld for the past five months.
Reacting to the allegations, the All Progressives Congress described the PDP’s leadership in the state as being deceptive and accused it of misleading both the Nigerian public and the international community. The APC, in a statement by its spokesperson, Kola Olabisi, dismissed the PDP’s claims as baseless.
According to the APC, the funds were not being withheld as alleged. Instead, the party insisted that the rightful recipients, which it claimed were the reinstated APC council officials, were in the process of receiving the allocations. The APC referenced the Court of Appeal judgment delivered on February 10, 2025, which, it said, restored its chairmen and councillors to office.
The APC questioned why the PDP failed to appeal the court’s ruling and accused the party of attempting to withdraw its pending case at the Supreme Court. It also wondered why the PDP continued to act as a party to a matter it was no longer legally part of, especially after the Supreme Court had earlier affirmed full autonomy for local governments across the country.
The statement further alleged that the Osun State government, under PDP control, was responsible for diverting about N84 billion from local government funds, in violation of the Supreme Court’s ruling. The APC said this debt was at the heart of the financial controversy.
Meanwhile, the PDP has vowed to take its complaints to international bodies such as Transparency International, the International Crisis Group, Amnesty International, and various Western embassies. The party said it would continue pushing for the enforcement of the Court of Appeal judgment it believes favours its elected officials.
Bisi called on the international community to see the Osun governorship election in 2026 as a litmus test for Nigeria’s democracy, urging observers to take interest in the current political developments in the state.
