Adeleke denies fighting embattled Chief Judge over Adedoyin case
By Ismail Azeez, Osogbo
Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke has denied fighting embattled Chief Judge, Adepele Ojo after State’s Chief Judge sentencing of Chief Raheem Adedoyin.
In a statement signed by Governor’s Spokesperson, Mallam Olawale Rasheed, the Governor is being blackmailed with the Adedoyin case for refusing to shield and protect the Chief Judge.
According to the statement, “Our attention has been drawn to a defamatory fake news alleging that Governor Ademola Adeleke and his family are after the State’s Chief Judge because of the sentencing of Chief Raheem Adedoyin.
“The truth which the public must be aware of is that Mr Governor is being blackmailed with the Adedoyin case for refusing to shield and protect the Chief Judge, his town woman, from corruption probe.
“The blackmail is a falsehood without any foundation in truth. Chief Adedoyin is not and has never, in whatever form, been a friend of the Adelekes.
“Secondly, neither the Governor nor his family had any contact or interference in the Adedoyin case while it lasted. From the beginning to the end, no member of the Adeleke family was involved in any way in the legal process.
“Thirdly, Adedoyin was never in any way involved with the PDP, the party of the Governor. If anything, Adedoyin was a strong APC loyalist and an ally of the past Governor of Osun state.
“What is more, throughout the trial, Adedoyin’s legal team was manned by prominent APC lawyers from the beginning to the end. No single PDP lawyer was involved with the Adedoyin team.
“We affirm that the crisis rocking the state judiciary has to do with a series of petitions from judicial officials on alleged misconduct of the Chief Judge. On each occasion, those petitions always ended up unprocessed over deliberate blackmail with the Adedoyin matter until recent action by the State Assembly.
“The Governor’s sin is his consistent refusal to accept overtures to protect his kinswoman, the Chief Judge, from probe on alleged corruption. Mr Governor has always maintained his ground that if as a Governor he is not immune from accountability questions, why should he use his office to protect another official because of blood or town kinship?
“With all sense of responsibility, we declare that neither Governor Adeleke nor any member of his family has anything to do with the travails of the Chief Judge.
“The Governor’s refusal to shield his town people from corruption probe including the Chief Judge is largely responsible for the failed attempt to blackmail the Governor with the Adeoyin case. We reject the shameful linkage on alleged corruption within the judiciary and the Adedoyin matter. Public officials are not immune from accountability issues.
“We assert strongly that the Governor is not in any way linked with either the petition against the Chief Judge or the infamous Adedoyin case. The Number One Citizen will not not use his office to shield anybody from accountability questions even if that person is from his family.
“The Governor has subsequently directed the state law officers to prosecute anybody peddling such defamatory and libelous publications as such fake news has no foundation in truth or reality.”
…Adeleke denies removing Osun Chief Judge
Meanwhile, the government of Osun state has denied that Governor Ademola Adeleke removed the embattled Chief Judge, Adepele Ojo and appointed an acting Chief Judge.
In a statement on Sunday signed by Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Oluomo Kolapo Alimi, Governor Adeleke has not appointed any judicial official as Acting Chief Judge and nobody has been sworn as Acting Chief Judge of Osun state.
He clarified that the Governor had only forwarded the resolution of the House of Assembly and recommendation for an acting appointment to the Chief Justice of the Federation for decision and action.
According to statement, “With all sense of responsibility, it is important to set the records straight that Governor Adeleke has only duly notified the Chief Justice as the Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC) in writing about the resolutions of the House of Assembly following a series of petitions made against the sitting Chief Judge of Osun State.
“In the communication, Mr Governor intimated the CJN of the recommendation of the House that the Chief Judge should step aside and included his own submission for an acting appointment to fill the vacuum while the NJC reviews and decides on the petition.
“To that end, the Governor in the same letter recommended to the CJN, the appointment of the most senior judicial officer, Hon.Justice Olayinka David Afolabi for thorough consideration and further processing by the same NJC through the CJN.
“We urge the public to note that while the House of Assembly recommended the appointment of a replacement to the Governor in its resolution, the Governor however toed the line of law by writing the CJN on the entire development and submitting all materials for NJC as mandated national agency.
“We therefore wish to state categorically that Governor Adeleke has not appointed any judicial official as Acting Chief Judge and nobody has been sworn as Acting Chief Judge of Osun state.
“Governor Adeleke is a man of due process and rule of law with a deep level of respect for the bar and the bench, the NJC and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“We assure the public that Mr Governor is fully aware of the limit of his powers as well as the responsibilities of the various agencies of government and will therefore not act in any way to violate the constitution and rule of law.”
Meanwhile, the Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has stated that the lingering furore that has attracted the bungled suspension of the Chief Judge of Osun State, Justice Oyebola Adepele-Ojo, by the state Governor Ademola Adeleke through his docile House of Assembly, has further exposed Adeleke, his co-travellers and the lawmakers as a bundle of entities abundantly lacking what it takes to increase the fortune and prosperity of the state in all ramifications
Recall that despite the fact that Justice Dele Peters of the National Industrial Court (NIC) sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State, granted an interim injunction, restraining the governor from removing the CJ or terminating her appointment, Adeleke announced the suspension of Justice Oyebola Adepele-Ojo and replaced her with Justice Yinka Afolabi who refused to show up for his inauguration that was earlier publicized with excitement by the media handlers of Adeleke.
Commenting on the development, the chairman of the state APC, Sooko Tajudeen Lawal, said there was no reason for him to be worried on the issue as it is pretty difficult for someone to give what he does not possess.
Meanwhile, Lawal stated that if Governor Adeleke is uninformed about the constitution, he had expected those who are parading themselves as lawmakers would have guided the accidental governor aright.
In his words: “When the blind leads the blind, the fall of all of them will be catastrophic which is what is being witnessed in Osun State today.
“The haphazard handling of the CJ’s suspension by the Osun State lawmakers further confirms the allegation by the public that nothing beneficial to the citizenry can evolve from the assembly which sixteen of its members are alleged to be Yahoo chieftains?
“One is safe to conclude that the House of Assembly under the speakership of Wale Egbedun has an image problem to contend with before the members of the public can take them serious that they are not the suckers and lapdogs of Governor Adeleke.
“The state assembly must, urgently, cure itself of the puppeteerist brand it has earned for itself since inauguration,” Lawal counselled.
