The Integrity Group of Nigeria, Osun State Chapter, has accused the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) in Osun of abandoning its duty and instead becoming a willing political tool in the hands of Governor Ademola Adeleke.
In a statement signed by its State Chairman, Comr Salam Mustapha, the group described NULGE’s recent defence of Adeleke as shameful, misleading, and a calculated attempt to deceive the public while grassroots governance is being strangled.
The Integrity Group said NULGE’s claim that its strike is to defend the rule of law cannot hold water, stressing that Governor Adeleke has persistently disobeyed subsisting court judgments reinstating duly elected APC local government chairmen.
Adeleke and his allies in NULGE cannot talk about the rule of law while trampling on court rulings. What they are defending is impunity, not justice,” the statement read.
The group alleged that the real motive behind the strike is to shield Adeleke’s continued diversion of local government allocations. It maintained that Osun residents are fully aware that funds meant for grassroots development have been hijacked under the cover of an unnecessary strike.
Osun people are not deceived. NULGE’s strike is not about defending the law; it is about protecting Adeleke’s reckless financial control over council funds,” Mustapha stated.
Responding to NULGE’s claim that the APC attempted to impose a “non-existing treasurer,” the Integrity Group dismissed it as propaganda designed to confuse the public.
The Constitution is clear, elected chairmen are the lawful managers of councils. NULGE has no legal authority to rewrite this to satisfy Adeleke,” the group said.
It also described the story of alleged gunshots at the Central Bank as fabricated drama to attract sympathy, noting that no credible evidence has been provided.
The Integrity Group called on NULGE to end what it described as “blackmail against the people of Osun” and stop acting as Adeleke’s shield against accountability.
It urged workers not to allow themselves to be used as pawns in a political power game and demanded that the governor release local government funds and allow the reinstated APC chairmen to function as ordered by the courts.
NULGE has lost credibility. Adeleke’s illegalities at the grassroots cannot last forever. The people of Osun will hold him and his collaborators responsible for the collapse of local government governance,” the statement concluded.
Signed:
Comr Salam Mustapha
State Chairman
Integrity Group of Nigeria, Osun State Chapter
