The newly sworn-in governor of Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, has ordered the freezing of all government accounts with banks and other financial institutions.
Governor Adeleke accused the immediate past governor of the state, Gboyega Oyetola, of maliciously carrying out some actions after he (Adeleke) won the July 16 governorship election.
The directive was given by Adeleke in his first executive order while delivering a speech during his inauguration on Sunday, November 27, 2022.
Some of those actions, which he described as roadblocks to make things difficult for his administration include hurried mass employment without budgetary provision for salaries, award of hurried and criminally backdated contracts without budgetary provisions, hurried appointment of several Obas without following due process, among others.
Governor Adeleke also reversed the name of the state from ‘State of Osun’ to ‘Osun State,’ saying the former was alien to the constitution.
Lambasts immediate past governor: Adeleke, in his speech said, “My good people of Osun, since you elected me as your governor on July 16, 2022, which the Independent National Electoral Commission announced on July 17, 2022, the former governor, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, maliciously started putting roadblocks to make things difficult and almost impossible for the new administration to serve you.
- “Mass employment was carried out without budgetary provision for salary payments for the new employees; even when the state was struggling to pay salaries and deliver other services. Various hurried and criminally backdated contracts were awarded and again without budgetary provisions. Appointments of several Obas were hurriedly done without following due process, just to mention a few.
- “All efforts to get the governor to set up a transition committee and submit hand-over notes in line with best practices proved abortive. It is therefore my desire to ask for your patience and understanding to give my administration a few weeks to review and sort out all the actions and malicious confusion that the immediate past administration has created since July 17, 2022. Those actions were indeed vindictive measures against the people of Osun State for voting them out of office.’’
New orders: The governor, in his new order said, “Consequently, I hereby issue the following directives, which will be backed up with appropriate executive orders:
- “Immediate freezing of all government accounts in banks and other financial institutions;
- “Immediate establishment of a panel to carry out an inventory and recover all government assets;
- “An immediate establishment of a panel to review all appointments and major decisions of the immediate past administration taken after July 17, 2022;
- “An immediate reversal to the constitutionally recognised name of our state, ‘Osun State. All government insignia, correspondences and signages should henceforth reflect Osun State rather than State of Osun which is unknown in the Nigerian constitution.”
For the record: Senator Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party was sworn in on Sunday in Osogbo as the sixth executive governor of Osun State.
The Chief Judge of Osun State, Justice Adepele Ojo, administered the oath of office on Adeleke at the Osogbo City Stadium.
Earlier, Justice Ojo administered the oath of allegiance to Adeleke’s deputy, Mr. Kola Adewusi.
Adeleke succeeded former Gov. Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC).