Ondo: APC chieftain slams Aiyedatiwa on nullification of LCDAs, urges appeal

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State, Omo’ba Abayomi Adesanya, has criticized Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa for not appealing the nullification of the newly created 33 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in the state.

Adesanya, a Senior Special Assistant to the Deputy Senate President and former State Publicity Secretary of Ondo APC, stated that the nullification is a minus to Aiyedatiwa’s government.

“The nullification of the LCDAs is a minus to Aiyedatiwa’s government,” Adesanya said. “Posterity will not be kind to Aiyedatiwa if the government did not appeal the judgment”, he said.

Adesanya praised former Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu for having the political will to create the 33 LCDAs. “Since 1999, successive governments of Governor Adebayo Adefarati, Governor Olusegun Agagu, and Governor Olusegun Abayomi Mimiko have tried to bring government closer to the grassroots through creation of more Local Council Development Areas, but to no avail, for lack of political will,” Adesanya said. “After 24 years of failed attempts by previous governments, Akeredolu had the Political Will, in conjunction with the State House of Assembly, to create 33 LCDAs to bring governance closer to the people.”

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Adesanya expressed surprise that Aiyedatiwa did not appeal the judgment, saying, “Rather than commending him (Akeredolu) and fortifying the LCDAs with relevant laws and amendments, I don’t want to believe Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa surreptitiously allowed the 33 LCDAs to slip off the people of Ondo State, because posterity will not forgive him.”

He advised Aiyedatiwa to appeal the judgment, saying, “I advise Governor Aiyedatiwa to appeal the judgment of the State High Court nullifying the creation of the 33 LCDA to bring it back to life and to avoid been accused of destroying all the legacies of his boss, Akeredolu, as various communities have also spent so much to build Secretariats for the new LCDAs.”

Adesanya’s statement reads in part: “The nullification of the LCDAs is a minus to Aiyedatiwa’s government. Posterity will not be kind to Aiyedatiwa if the government did not appeal the judgment. I don’t want to believe Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa surreptitiously allowed the 33 LCDAs to slip off the people of Ondo State.”

Adesanya’s criticism comes after an Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure nullified the newly created 33 Local Government Development Areas in the state, describing the LCDAs as illegal and unlawful. The court ruling was a result of a suit filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, challenging the creation of the LCDAs by the former governor, Akeredolu.

The creation of the LCDAs was seen as a move to bring governance closer to the people, especially in rural areas. The nullification of the LCDAs has been met with widespread criticism, with many calling on the government to appeal the judgment.

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