The crisis surrounding local government administration in Osun State has raised questions about who controls the councils, who has access to their funds and how the dispute affects residents who depend on them for basic services.

The disagreement over the leadership of the councils has persisted through court cases, elections and disputes over the release of statutory allocations.

While political actors continue to contest the administration of the local councils, questions remain about the resources available to them and their ability to meet the needs of residents.

It is against this background that DevReporting, a development journalism platform, presented LG Billions in the Dark, an investigative documentary examining local government administration and service delivery in Osun State.

The documentary was unveiled at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) on October 29, as part of a package that also featured the launch of the Development Reporting Africa Foundation (DRAF).

The investigation examined conditions across several communities, including Iba, Ila Orangun, Irepodun, Ikoyi, Oore, Ede, Osogbo, Ikire and Ikirun.

It considered concerns around healthcare, education, transportation, security and what residents described as inadequate government attention to their communities.

One aspect of the investigation was the review of 28 primary healthcare centres. The documentary also brought attention to the difficulties residents encounter in accessing basic services and the questions surrounding the management of local council resources.

In the documentary, a local council chairman from Irepodun complained that elected council chairmen did not have access to funds, identifying the situation as one of the factors affecting the growth and development of local governments.

The screening brought together journalists, academics, lawyers, public officials and civil society representatives to discuss the state of local government administration and the need for accountability at the grassroots.

The dispute over local government autonomy
The crisis surrounding local government administration in Osun State has been marked by competing claims over who has the authority to control the councils.

The dispute dates back to the October 15, 2022 local government election conducted under the administration of former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola.

The election was challenged in court, and the Federal High Court in Osogbo nullified it in November 2022, ordering the elected officials to leave office.

However, on February 10, 2025, the Court of Appeal allowed an appeal filed by the APC and struck out the PDP’s suit challenging the 2022 election on the grounds that it was incompetent.

The ruling generated different interpretations.

The Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, said the decision effectively restored the APC-elected chairmen and councillors, while the Osun State Government maintained that the appellate court had not expressly ordered their reinstatement.

Despite the disagreement, Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration proceeded with the local government election scheduled for February 22, 2025.

The PDP won the election, but the APC officials also returned to the council secretariats, creating competing claims over control of the councils.

The dispute continued through further court proceedings, leaving questions about the legitimate leadership of the councils and the administration of their funds.

The disagreement has also affected the release of allocations meant for the councils. The dispute over who should control the local governments has raised questions about the implementation of the Supreme Court’s July 2024 judgment on local government financial autonomy.

Speaking at the UNILAG event, human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, criticised the continued failure to implement the judgment.

In his keynote address, titled Accessibility, Resources and Citizen Voices: Building Local Governments That Work for the People, Falana said local government autonomy had remained a subject of struggle since the return to democratic rule in 1999.

He argued that local governments should be administered by democratically elected officials and should have access to the funds allocated to them.

Falana said the Supreme Court had made it clear that state governments could not withhold or divert allocations belonging to local governments or dissolve elected councils and replace them with caretaker committees.

However, he said political authorities had continued to disregard the court’s decision.

“The rule of law is not optional. It is not something you obey only when it is convenient,” he said. Falana also questioned the whereabouts of funds allocated to local governments, saying that although figures were available, Nigerians could not always establish how the money was being used. “The question is: where is this money?” he asked.

According to him, local governments are expected to be the tier of government closest to the people, but their ability to perform that responsibility is weakened when they cannot access the resources meant for them.

In an interview after the documentary screening, Falana said the Federal Government had a responsibility to implement the Supreme Court’s judgment by paying statutory allocations directly to local governments.

He said the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation had informed local governments that they were required to open accounts with the Central Bank to facilitate the process.

However, he argued that the Federal Government had yet to fully implement the judgment. Falana also faulted the suggestion that an executive order was needed to enforce the court’s decision, insisting that compliance with a Supreme Court judgment did not require a further directive. “The Federal Government has a duty to comply with the judgment,” he said.

He called on residents of Osun State to put pressure on the Federal Government to release allocations meant for the councils.

Falana recalled that Nigerians had mounted pressure on the government when former President Olusegun Obasanjo withheld local government funds.

He said the administration of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua subsequently complied with the Supreme Court judgment.

He also urged Nigerians to remind President Bola Tinubu of his experience as governor of Lagos State, where local government autonomy was a significant issue.

What the crisis means for residents
Beyond the political and legal arguments, the documentary examined how local government administration affects access to basic services.

The investigation reviewed 28 primary healthcare centres and raised concerns about healthcare delivery, education, transportation and security across the communities covered.

These are areas in which local governments are expected to play important roles in grassroots development.

However, the documentary’s focus was not limited to the availability of public funds. It also examined the experiences of residents and the condition of services in their communities.

The complaint about healthcare was particularly relevant to the review of the primary healthcare centres. Primary healthcare facilities are often the first point of contact for people seeking medical attention, especially in communities where access to larger hospitals may be difficult.

The investigation also considered concerns about education and transportation, as well as security challenges and what residents described as government neglect. Falana challenged the organisers to look beyond the question of local government allocations when investigating development in Osun State.

He said the documentary should also examine what the state government receives from the Federal Government and how it spends its internally generated revenue.

He questioned what had sustained communities in the state despite the reported difficulties surrounding access to local government funds.

“The entire film you watched has very little to do with the government,” Falana said during his interview, arguing that residents continued to farm, trade and carry on with their daily activities despite limited government intervention.

He urged the organisation to investigate the state’s mineral resources, particularly gold, and the activities of private individuals involved in mining.

According to him, Osun has considerable mineral wealth, including gold, which was discovered in the state decades ago. He alleged that illegal mining had contributed to environmental degradation and pollution in some communities.

Falana said proper management of the state’s mineral resources could create economic opportunities for residents.

He also highlighted the state’s agricultural potential, noting that many residents depend on farming for their livelihoods.

He urged the government to prioritise support for farmers, trade and other economic activities that could improve living conditions rather than relying on interventions that offer limited long-term economic benefits.

Falana also identified tourism and cultural heritage as areas with development potential, citing the Osun-Osogbo Festival as an attraction that could support the state’s tourism industry.

Citizens and the responsibility to demand accountability
Falana said residents should not leave questions about public spending entirely to politicians or government officials.

He encouraged Nigerians to use the Freedom of Information Act to request details of government allocations and expenditure.

According to him, residents have the right to ask how much their local governments have received and how the funds have been spent.

He said citizens should also demand information about government projects and policies rather than accepting announcements without evidence of implementation.

“You can ask how much your local government has received since 1999. You can also demand information about how the funds have been spent,” he said.

The lawyer also linked public accountability to the enforcement of existing laws, particularly in education and healthcare.

He said Nigeria had a legal framework for compulsory education from primary school to junior secondary school, but poor implementation had contributed to the large number of out-of-school children.

He warned that children who do not receive education are more vulnerable to recruitment by terrorists and bandits.

Falana also called for the implementation of Nigeria’s health insurance framework, arguing that citizens should demand that governments enforce existing laws rather than merely complain about corruption and poor public services.

He said citizens had a responsibility to question government decisions and demand that public resources be used to improve their lives.

The role of journalism in local government accountability
The chairman of the occasion, the publisher of Premium Times and chief executive officer of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Dapo Olorunyomi, said accountability was a fundamental principle of democratic governance.

He argued that the state of a country’s institutions reflected the condition of its democracy, adding that the media had an important role in examining how public institutions function.

Olorunyomi said journalism should help citizens understand the decisions and activities of those in government, while providing information that could support public conversations about development.

He commended DevReporting for its work on governance and development reporting, describing the organisation’s commitment to accountability journalism as important to national development.

“One of the most important institutions in a democracy is the media, and it is always important to maintain its independence and integrity,” he said.

He added that journalism should remain professional, accessible and impactful, while encouraging conversations that place development issues at the centre of public discourse.

Olorunyomi also urged journalists to pursue work that provides alternatives and contributes to national development.

“Journalism can save our country. We must take the kind of direction that will provide an alternative path for national development,” he said.

In her opening remarks, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Professor Folasade Ogunsola, addressed the gathering as the university hosted the screening and discussions on local government accountability.

The event also featured the unveiling of the Development Reporting Africa Foundation by the convener of LG Billions in the Dark, Mojeed Alabi.

The foundation was introduced under the theme Next Gen for Open Local Government, with the aim of supporting efforts to promote transparency and accountability in local government administration.
Making local government budgets accessible to residents

Speaking on the need for citizens to participate in local government administration, the Executive Chairman of Onigbongbo Local Council Development Area, Moyosore Adebanjo, said residents must take an active interest in their councils’ budgets.

He said community members should understand how funds are allocated, the sectors that receive funding and the projects scheduled for their areas.

According to him, residents should also monitor the implementation of projects and ask questions about whether budgeted interventions are carried out.

“We can only ensure that local government allocations are judiciously utilised when community members take an active interest in their local council’s budget,” he said.

Adebanjo said citizens must be willing to participate in decisions affecting their communities, adding that local government administrations also have a responsibility to prioritise residents’ welfare.

He disclosed that the Social Directorate of his council was scheduled to hold a stakeholder engagement to assess its achievements and discuss priorities for the next budget year.

The meeting, he said, would provide an opportunity for residents to communicate their needs and contribute to the council’s planning process.

In an interview with Mojeed Alabi, he said approximately ₦250 million was allocated to individual local governments, while about ₦238.4 billion was allocated across the 30 local governments in Osun State during the period of the leadership crisis.

He said the dispute has created two factions of local government chairmen, described as the “yes-or-no” and “sit-at-home” chairmen, leaving residents uncertain about who is legitimately in control.

Alabi also said his team visited United Bank for Africa (UBA) to establish the status of some of the funds reportedly held in accounts opened by the disputed chairmen, but the bank declined to comment, citing ongoing court proceedings.

The documentary’s screening and the launch of DRAF were supported by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, Norway and the University of Lagos.

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