Withheld LG Allocations: Ooni Led-Osun Obas Appeal For Tinubu’s Intervention

• Mr. President hear cries of common community dwellers across our farmlands and villages

The Council of Obas in Osun State has appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene in the crisis surrounding withheld local government allocations in the state, warning that the situation has crippled grassroots governance and negatively affected local communities.

Rising from a meeting at the Ile Oodua Palace, Ile-Ife, on Tuesday, the monarchs, under the chairmanship of the Ooni of Ife, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, said the non-release of funds had paralyzed activities across the 30 local government areas and the area office.

The royal fathers explained that traditional rulers, as natural leaders and closest to the people, depend on functional local government administration to deliver meaningful community engagement and development.

“We are not interested in politics, individual differences, or whatever may have led to the seizure of these funds. Our interest is simply to see a working society and functional local government for the benefit of all, especially the vulnerable in our communities,” the Council stated.

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They further lamented that traditional institutions across the state, which are largely sustained through five percent deductions from local government allocations, have been unable to meet their obligations to the people.

The monarchs decried the inactivity of council secretariats, deterioration of markets, roads, and other grassroots services, stressing that communities in Osun are bearing the brunt of the crisis.

Calling on President Tinubu to step in “as father of the nation,” the traditional rulers said resolving the matter would not only benefit Osun’s rural dwellers but also re-energize the traditional institution to continue complementing the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

They also expressed confidence in the president’s commitment to assigning constitutional roles to traditional rulers in strengthening rural development and civil engagement, noting that his intervention in the ongoing allocation impasse would further demonstrate his leadership.

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“We will be glad if Mr. President can hear the cries of common community dwellers across our farmlands and villages, suffering hugely from the total deactivation of local government activities for several months,” the Council added.

The meeting, which followed a resolution of the statutory State Council of Obas meeting held on July 3, 2025, ended with a formal appeal signed by the Ooni of Ife, Arole Oduduwa Olofin Adimula, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II.