Outrage As NULGE Rejects Osun Allocation Transfer To APC Chairman 

June 27, 2025
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A storm erupted today from the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) after federal authorities allegedly directed local government funds for Osun State to be diverted to All Progressives Congress (APC) state chairmen—an action the union has condemned as unconstitutional and politically driven.

NULGE President, Aliyu Kankara, issued a statement alleging that both the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) are preparing to release statutory allocations – originally intended for Osun’s 30 local government areas – to individuals not legally recognized by law .

The transfer of funds would bypass the official Ministry of Local Governments at the Osun State Secretariat, targeting instead the APC State Secretariat in Osogbo.

Kankara labeled this directive a “surreptitious move” in defiance of the fiscal autonomy granted to LGAs.

Senior Advocate of Nigeria Musibau Adetunbi, representing the Osun State government in a parallel legal dispute, denounced the AGF’s instruction as “politically motivated and unlawful.” He stressed the absence of any provision in the Court of Appeal’s February and June 2025 rulings that would justify rerouting funds to partisan actors.

He explained that the Court’s judgment explicitly declined to empower APC chairmen and councillors to assume office, making any such federal directive a blatant overreach.

Kankara highlighted a June 10 letter from the AGF’s office—signed by Okolie Rita—that demanded two officials (either chair, treasurer, or director of finance) from each LGA submit letters to activate new CBN accounts for council funds. He asserted this violated LGA fiscal autonomy, calling the move “an aberration” and a threat to grassroots democracy.

The union has formally appealed to President Bola Tinubu, the CBN Governor, the Finance Minister, and the AGF to halt the transfer and ensure allocations from January 2025 onward are paid into legally sanctioned local government accounts, in compliance with the June 13, 2025 Appeal Court judgment.

In addition to NULGE’s outcry, the Coalition for Good Governance and the Transparency Centre Network have issued ultimatums for federal enforcement of the appeal court ruling. They have threatened nationwide protests and demanded that unauthorized occupants be expelled from council secretariats.

Constitutional conflict: The dispute pits constitutional fiscal guarantees for local governments against alleged federal attempts to exert partisan control.

Political tension: With APC-linked individuals reportedly set to receive funds, critics warn of an erosion of democratic norms.

Potential unrest: With unions and civil society groups mobilizing, public agitation could escalate if federal authorities do not reverse course.

NULGE and Osun’s legal team may pursue court injunctions to block the transfers, pushing the issue into the judiciary. Simultaneously, civil society and grassroots actors are poised to escalate pressure through activism and advocacy.

In summary, the NULGE-led backlash highlights a constitutional standoff: whether federal authorities can legally reroute local government allocations to partisan actors. At stake is not just the purse of Osun’s LGAs, but the integrity of Nigeria’s local government autonomy.

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