The House of Representatives has unanimously resolved to call on the Inspector General Police, the Director General of the Department of State Security and other security heads to immediately restore law, peace and order in Osun state.
The Speaker of the House, Mr. Tajudeen Abbas, also set up a committee following the adoption of a ‘motion of urgent public importance’ moved by nine members of the House of Representatives from the state following the outbreak of violence in several parts of the state as a result of the attempt to take over the administration of local governments by officials who were sacked by court judgement in November 2022.
The members are: Rep. Bamidele Salam; Rep. Oke Busayo Oluwole; Rep. AjilesoroTaofeek Abimbola; Rep. Omirin Emanuel Olusanya; Rep. Oladebo Lanre Alomoleye; Rep. Adewale Morufu Adebayo; Rep. Mudashiru Lukman Alani; Rep. Akanni Clement Ademola and Rep. Adetunji Abidemi Olusoji.
The motion was moved on behalf of the lawmakers by Mr. Salam representing Ede north, Ede south, Egbedore and Ejigbo Federal Constituency of Osun state.
Mr Salam emphasized that on Monday 17th of February 2025, violence broke out in several parts of Osun state as a result of an attempt to take over the administration of local governments by officials who were sacked by court judgement in November 2022.
The House condemned any resort to self-help, violence, killings and harassment by individuals and political interests in Osun State.
“Disturbed that the sacked officials are now breaking the gates of their respective local government secretariat to forcefully take over the government of the local government without any court order;
“Note that the Governor of Osun State as the Chief Security officer of the state had raised an alarm on Sunday the 16th of February about an imminent threat to peace and security in the state while calling on the Inspector General of Police and other heads of security formations to take proactive steps to forestall the violence;
“Concerned that if the current trend of resorting to self-help by political actors is not nipped in the bud, it might encourage citizens to do the same in the face of perceived rights and privileges;
“Worried that the present situation in Osun state may snowball into a free for all unless urgent actions are taken by relevant authorities;
“Concerned that the preventable violence which happened in Osun has led to the death of six persons while scores of others have suffered severe injuries and presently receiving treatment in various hospitals;
“Further worried that if prompt action is not taken against this lawlessness and arbitrariness, it may escalate into a more serious security challenge in Osun;
“Aware that by virtue of Section 14 (2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the most fundamental objective and primary purpose of any government shall be the security and welfare of the people;
“Also aware that as the representatives of the people, the House has the duty and responsibility to ensure safety of lives and properties in Nigeria;
“Assured that the Nigerian Police, the Department of State Service and other security agencies have the capacity to restore normalcy to all the local governments of Osun State;
“Further assured that if the Attorney General of the Federation as the chief law officer of the country can advise the parties, the tension in Osun state would be doused” the motion read.
The motion called on the Inspector General of Police, the DG DSS and other security heads to ensure normalcy and make sure order is restored to all local governments in Osun State.
The motion also urged the Attorney General of the Federation to properly advise all parties to the dispute in the control of the local governments in Osun state as to the true position of the law and encourage aggrieved parties to seek judicial enforcement of rights rather than use of force.
The House also observed a minute silence in honour of persons killed in the course of the crisis that occurred on Monday 17th February 2025.
Emmanuel Ukoh
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