Kwara PDP hails court ruling on appointment of LG caretaker chairmen
By Ogundele Olanrewaju
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Kwara State has hailed the ruling of a State High Court, sitting in Ilorin, which declared the appointment of caretaker chairmen for the 16 local government councils in the State as illegal, null and void.
An anti-corruption Civil Society Organization, the Elites Network for Sustainable Development (ENetSuD), had dragged the State government to court over the dissolution of democratically elected council chairmen and illegal appointment of caretaker committee by Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq.
In his ruling on Friday, Justice Hassan A. Gegele of the State High Court, ruled that Abdulrazaq had no power to suspend democratically elected local government council executives and replace them with caretaker committees, describing the governor’s action as an executive rascality and abuse of power.
Reacting to the judgment, the Kwara PDP in a statement by its State Publicity Secretary, Tunde Ashaolu, said the ruling was a welcome development and victory for democracy and the rule of law.
The party also commended ENetSuD for fighting illegality, demanding justice and making efforts to deepen democracy in the State, saying that posterity would be kind to the group.
“The ruling of the Court did not come as a surprise to us. It is in line with our earlier position that the Governor lacks power to sack elected council chairmen and that the appointment of Transition Implementation Committee (TIC) by him is unconstitutional, undemocratic, null and void. Today’s judgement is a victory for democracy, rule of law and the good people of Kwara State who have always demanded justice and adherence to due process.
“Our party commends ENetSuD for standing against illegality and impunity, for demanding justice and making efforts to deepen democracy in our dear State. Your doggedness and resilience eventually paid off. Posterity will be kind to you.
“Now that the Court has ruled that the caretaker committees are non-existent in the eyes of the law, we expect Governor Abdulrazaq to immediately initiate process to conduct local government elections,” the Kwara PDP statement reads in part.
