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The Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has commended residents of the state for what it described as their courage and democratic consciousness in resisting what the party called an attempt by the Ademola Adeleke-led government to undermine local government democracy.

In a statement issued on Sunday, January 18, 2026, and signed by its Director of Media and Information, Mogaji Kola Olabisi, the APC said the people’s resistance helped to prevent what it alleged was a “grand plot” to replace the rule of law at the grassroots with executive impunity.

The opposition party accused the state government of refusing to comply with a judgment of the Court of Appeal, Akure Division, delivered on February 10, 2025, which it said reinstated the APC-elected local government chairmen and councillors.

According to the APC, rather than obey the appellate court ruling, the Adeleke administration allegedly chose to defy constitutional order, a move the party described as capable of throwing the state into anarchy.

The party also took aim at the government’s legal counsel, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, accusing him of providing what it termed “reckless legal advice” that encouraged the state government’s actions.

APC claimed that Chief Ozekhome is currently facing criminal charges filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over allegations of corruption and forgery.

The party stated that the ICPC filed a three-count charge following an investigation triggered by a 2025 judgment of a London First-Tier Tribunal concerning a property located at 79 Randall Avenue, London NW2 7SX.
According to the APC, the ICPC alleged that Ozekhome forged a Nigerian passport in Abuja in August 2021 in the name of “Shani Tali” to support a claim of ownership of the London property, and later used the document as genuine to advance that claim.

The APC said it was “tragic” that Osun State, in its view, had been “handed over to legal mercenaries,” accusing the Adeleke government of engaging in forum shopping and showing contempt for judicial hierarchy.

The party further alleged that the state government attempted to impose local government officials produced through what it described as a “widely rejected and illegal” local government election conducted in February 2025, in defiance of the Court of Appeal judgment.
Describing the officials as “imposters,” the APC claimed they were not elected by the people but manufactured through executive recklessness and judicial manipulation.

While acknowledging that Chief Ozekhome is entitled to the presumption of innocence, the APC said the allegations against him had further discredited the legal advice given to the Osun State government and had exposed what it called the “rotten foundation” of its defiance of the law.
The party warned Governor Adeleke that “governance is not a carnival” and urged the administration to respect the rule of law, stressing that Osun State could not progress on what it described as a foundation of lawlessness and deception.

Once again, the APC praised the people of Osun State for standing on what it called the side of justice and constitutionalism, assuring residents that their actions would be remembered as having prevented the alleged hijack of local government administration in the state.