Adeleke never sacked any worker — Osun Govt clarifies
…Osun PDP tackles APC National Scribe over employment claims
By Jeleel Olawale and Ismail Azeez
The spokesperson to Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke, Mallam Olawale Rasheed, has insisted that no public servants were dismissed when the governor assumed office in 2022. He accused the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Ajibola Basiru, of deploying false information as a political tactic against the state government.
According to Rasheed, Governor Adeleke did not terminate the employment of any teachers or health workers. He explained that the previous administration, shortly before leaving office, had “injected against service rules APC sympathisers as teachers and health workers as a trap to destabilise the incoming government.”
He added, “Those disengaged were never staff of the Osun State government.”
Commenting on allegations that construction under the Oke Fia bridge has compromised the structure, Rasheed described the claim as “a pitiable lie from a propagandist,” stating that roadwork in the area is ongoing.
Rasheed was responding to comments made on national television by Senator Basiru, who alleged that the Adeleke administration had dismissed workers employed by the former Oyetola-led government.
“The APC National Secretary is invited to note that the Adeleke administration has a three-pronged water sector agenda which includes short term, medium term and long term plans. They are all simultaneously under implementation,” Rasheed said.
“On agriculture, Ajibola Bashiru cannot deny that from 2015 to 2022, Osun purchased no single tractor. The Adeleke administration has acquired and deployed 31 tractors to farmlands in the first phase of its farm mechanisation agenda.
“The administration’s statewide agropreneur initiative, cocoa expansion initiative, the cashew plantation programme and massive input support for Osun farmers are ongoing.
“On market expansion, we invite the scribe to review exceptional development ongoing within the Osun commerce and industry sector. The Chamber of Commerce is enjoying massive support to boost business; the state free trade zone is revitalised; Osun 45 days window for Certificate of Occupancy is working; tax harmonisation on a single window is operational; and cooperative and artisans’ empowerment is a reality across the state,” he added.
He went on to pose several rhetorical questions to Basiru in response to criticism of the government’s performance.
“Ajibola Bashiru cannot deny the huge achievements in the areas of workers’ welfare and payment of salary and pension debt,” he said. He also referenced the ongoing upgrade of the Osogbo stadium to a five-star facility, located in Basiru’s hometown.
He maintained that over 30,000 pensioners are now benefiting from free Medicare through the state’s health insurance scheme. He further argued that it would be false to claim that Adeleke had not advanced digital policy in the state.
“Ajibola Bashiru should not deny the fact that before Governor Adeleke’s election, Osun had no ICT or Digital Economy policies. Today, Governor Adeleke is implementing the first Osun State ICT policy, Tech Innovation policy and a vibrant digital economy agenda,” he said.
Rasheed dismissed claims that the administration responds to criticism with abuse. “What is abusive about stating facts such as Governor Adeleke tarring the road leading to the scribe’s house at Osogbo?
“What is insulting about calling attention of the APC National Secretary to his penchant for denying what even members of his own party acknowledged as sterling performance of Governor Adeleke?
“What is insulting about reeling out reports issued by federal agencies about good records of Governor Adeleke on debt management, examination ranking and access to primary health care?
“If the reference to ‘Amunbo’ caucus’s dumping the scribe is deemed insulting, it is our own way of identifying with him.
“It is a political way of telling the Osun APC that whether it is ‘Amunbo’ or ‘Alumonle’ (alubarika) that fly APC banner in 2026, Osun voters will again soundly re-elect Governor Adeleke.
“As noted by the state workforce when endorsing the governor for a second term, the performance of Governor Adeleke has earned him an overwhelming prospect for re-election despite all ongoing shenanigans,” Rasheed concluded.
In a parallel response, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State also refuted the allegations made by Senator Basiru. In a statement issued by the state chairman, Hon Sunday Bisi, the party described Basiru’s claims as “mere crocodile tears from a sore loser,” insisting that the state civil service operates according to established legal frameworks.
Bisi criticised what he described as a desperate effort by the APC to validate what he called an illegitimate employment exercise.
He stated, “Senator Basiru’s attempt to castigate Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration is futile. The good people of Osun, who voted out the APC, are fully aware of the deceit hidden in that last-minute employment charade.”
He added, “It is indeed laughable that an APC government which neglected workers’ welfare for years, failing to employ or conduct any statutory promotion for the existing workforce, suddenly began distributing civil service slots after losing the 2022 election. Clearly, this was not governance but an act of clear desperation.”
The PDP urged residents of Osun to remember the conditions endured by civil servants under the previous government, which included more than 30 months of unpaid salaries and stalled promotions. According to the party, it is under Adeleke’s leadership that these issues have begun to be properly addressed.
“It is unfortunate that those who presided over such a dark era in Osun civil service now seek to distract a genuinely empathic administration with baseless accusations,” the statement read.
The PDP affirmed that Governor Adeleke remains committed to addressing legitimate vacancies in the civil service through a lawful and transparent process, unlike the irregularities that characterised the APC’s final days in office.
Responding in turn, Senator Ajibola Basiru countered that the Adeleke administration has failed across multiple sectors.
He said, “It is important to remind the Adeleke administration that governance is not about trading insults but about responding to accountability with facts. A government that has failed across critical sectors cannot hide behind slogans and solar lights that barely last a week.”
Basiru questioned the administration’s claim of debt reduction, arguing, “While the administration boasts of a 40 per cent debt reduction, it conveniently hides the fact that Osun’s federal allocation has increased by over 300 per cent. What the Adeleke government claims as financial discipline is simply the benefit of increased federal oil receipts, not strategic fiscal management and discipline.”
He challenged the administration to explain its handling of teacher dismissals, saying, “Governor Adeleke has denied the widespread reports of teachers’ disengagement since assuming office. Why did Adeleke sack about 5,000 teachers employed by his predecessor, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola?
“Two and a half years after, why has he not engaged them again? APC doesn’t mind if Adeleke replaces all the 5,000 with members of his party. What matters is securing the future of our children.
“Besides, Thursday last week made it exactly a year that Adeleke announced employment of temporary staff at the state-owned media. No employment letter has been issued to them till date.”
He also criticised the quality of infrastructure projects, claiming, “The road commissioned with media fanfare was washed away within two days, a clear indictment of the substandard quality that defines this administration’s projects. The recurring cases of solar panel poles breaking within weeks and nonexistent borehole project across wards is a testament to how little value is placed on durability and transparency.
“In a shocking display of poor planning, the government had to start digging under the Oke Fia flyover, because clearly trucks could not pass under. Is this the infrastructural revolution they boast about?”
Basiru asserted that the Adeleke administration lacks a clear direction on key sectors.
“Osun people have yet to see any clear agenda for agriculture, water and sanitation, or market expansion. These are critical to livelihood. Yet Adeleke’s government has ignored them while focusing on showmanship and media stunts.
“Adeleke’s handlers have made it a habit to resort to street-level abuse when called to account. This culture of insults and diversion cannot replace transparent governance. No self-respecting administration attacks its critics with gutter language instead of facts,” he said.
