ADC accuses FG of using Osun funds as political weapon ahead of governorship poll

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the Federal Government of using the freezing of statutory allocations to local governments in Osun State as a political weapon ahead of the August 15 governorship election, describing the development as “political terrorism.”

 

In a statement issued on Wednesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the opposition party alleged that the withholding of local government funds formed part of a broader effort to weaken the Osun State Government before the election.

 

The ADC argued that the dispute had gone beyond politics, saying ordinary residents were bearing the consequences as funds meant for workers’ salaries, primary healthcare, schools and other essential grassroots services remained inaccessible.

 

According to the party, the alleged action was aimed at undermining the opposition through the use of state institutions.

 

“Political opponents are not enemy combatants. Opposition-controlled states are not occupied territories. Public institutions do not belong to whichever party temporarily controls the federal government,” Abdullahi said.

 

The party maintained that withholding the allocations amounted to using public welfare as leverage in a political contest.

 

“This sinister move confirms that the Tinubu-led Federal Government will do anything, including starving the people of Osun State, to achieve its political objectives. Yet no democracy worthy of the name deliberately sacrifices the welfare of innocent citizens in pursuit of partisan political ends,” the statement read.

 

The ADC further alleged that President Bola Tinubu’s approach to politics risked undermining democratic principles by treating elections as warfare rather than legitimate political competition.

 

“We have noted earlier that President Bola Tinubu’s mentality, which regards political contests as warfare, constitutes a serious threat to democratic engagement. But even in war, there are rules of engagement that recognise human dignity and place limits on the conduct of adversaries,” Abdullahi stated.

 

The party also alleged that unelected APC loyalists had continued to occupy local government councils in Osun State despite lacking democratic legitimacy, while accusing federal institutions of failing to uphold constitutional order.

 

It further claimed that Accord Party candidates and supporters had been subjected to politically motivated arrests and alleged that armed hoodlums linked to the APC had intimidated communities while security agencies looked on.

 

According to the statement, such actions, if established, would blur the line between impartial state institutions and partisan political interests.

 

“Taken together, these actions reveal something more dangerous than ordinary political competition. They point to the deliberate promotion of a state of anarchy by federal authorities and agencies whose constitutional duty is to preserve law, order and democratic stability,” the party said.

 

The ADC called for the immediate restoration of statutory allocations due to Osun’s local governments, an end to what it described as federal intimidation of the state, and respect for democratic processes, insisting that residents should be allowed to freely choose their leaders in the forthcoming election.