Judge to Assembly: For criminal mismanagement of Osun, Aregbesola, deputy must be impeached

Propelled by the desire to see the pains of Osun State people ameliorated and to, possibly “take away the reproach of our state as a bankrupt and a failed state”, Justice Oloyede Olamide Folahanmi of Osun State High Court has called on the 26-member House of Assembly to commence impeachment proceedings against Governor Rauf Aregbesola and Deputy Governor Titi Laoye-Tomori.
To the learned jurist, even Aregbesola admitted publicly the fact that Osun is in financial quagmire and that he is clueless on how to pull her out of the doldrums into which she has been pushed.
Justice Folahanmi wrote, in a 39-page petition he sent to the House of Assembly, traditional rulers in the South-West state, former governors, clerics and opinion leaders, that Aregbesola’s act of literally ruling the state from Saudi Arabia, Cuba and Lagos “is disloyal, neglectful and un-patriotic and is the direct cause of most of Osun’s problem. To begin with, Mr. Governor, did not grow up in Osun, and as such could not really know or understand its people and their challenges as well as their hope and aspirations”.
The judge was particularly livid over the governor’s deliberate
stifling of the judiciary of funds, “coupled with his refusal to pay the meager ‘running cost’ or and to pay judges and magistrates their housing and medical allowances or to give them serviceable official vehicles which has resulted in the closure of the state courts in the last six (6) months”.
To him, all these acts of recklessness amount to the greatest betrayal and treachery of the ideals of democracy and consequently of the rule of law of which he (Aregbesola) is one of the greatest beneficiaries”.
“This petition is presented with a deep sense of responsibility and sincerity of purpose, due to my conviction in the sanctity of ‘truth’ and in ‘the Rule of Law” as the bases for promoting the ideals and the attainment of “good governance and the welfare of all persons in our country, on the principles of freedom, equality and justice as enunciated at the Stockholm Conference (1942), a principle which finds expression in the preamble to our Constitution, and which I believe is a fundamental pre-condition to the establishment and sustenance of our collective dream of an “egalitarian society” as promised by Osun State’s anthem, as well as the basis for harmony, universal brotherhood and world peace.
“I declare that in presenting this petition, I’m not in any way motivated by malice, spite, pecuniary interest or promise thereof, nor am I propelled by a desire for higher office, since it has always been my conviction that all good things come from above, only from above. I am also not unmindful of the need to respect the dignity of fellow citizens and to respect constituted authority (including Mr. Governor), it is however trite that: respect begets respect, and that dignity is as dignity does.
“My objective is to ensure that human beings are treated justly, and thus ensure the reign of peace, since peace and justice can never be separated, they are two sides of the same coin.
“If the world is ever to experience peace, therefore, all hands must be on deck to ensure that no one is treated unjustly, and that the propensity of certain persons to mistreat and maltreat others are, at least, put in check, for as long as it is not quite possible to wipe out injustice completely.
“I verily believe, that the desired power, prestige and good image for our country that the majority yearns for can only be achieved when we all cooperate to fight ineptitude, corruption, greed and abuse of entrusted power in governance. I am also convinced of the fact that loving one’s brethren means doing that which will benefit them, which includes having them corrected and/or punished if they refuse to understand and persist in acts which are damaging to others beside themselves.
“Although, Mr. Governor had initially agreed to grant me audience, after I impressed upon him the urgency of my mission, regrettably later, he reneged on his promise, thereby making the publication of my petition, without first bringing it to his notice privately unavoidable.
“Mr. Governor’s policies are geared and are being pursued solely for the purpose of enriching himself, his godfathers, immediate families and his cronies, whilst impoverishing the generality of the people of Osun who look up to him for their welfare.
“I am propelled by the desire to see the pains of my fellow human beings ameliorated and to possibly, help take away the reproach of our state as “a bankrupt” and “a failed state”, as announced on Channels TV, by Mr. Tunji Onigbinde, and the desire to join hands with others of like minds to help salvage the sinking ship of Osun State.
“It is my sincere opinion that if this stigma is not to become permanent, if Osun is to stand any chance of recovery from the deadly blows dealt her, by those who have sworn to protect her and her interest, and in whom she had extended the hand of benevolence, then all loving hands must be on deck to rescue her from the clutches of her betrayer and tormentors.
“I declare that in addition to the media-hype of Osun’s parlous financial condition, I have first-hand experience which constitutes evidence of the unfortunate situation in which Osun currently finds herself, shall be shown hereunder, for I am not one to act on rumour or hastily.
“Even Mr. Governor has admitted publicly, the fact that Osun is in financial quagmire and that he is clueless on how to pull her out of the doldrums into which she has been pushed. Nor is it in dispute that the state has been unable to discharge its financial obligations to, its pensioners, civil service, the judicial arm and contractors alike.
“Governor Aregbesola made us believe that with frugality and ingenuity in plugging waste, he would ensure reduction in the cost of governance and, thereby, free more money for the provision of social amenities and infrastructure that will be directed at improving the standard of living of the people and this without adding to the state.
“He claimed to have the magic wand, the tricks up his sleeves, and to be blessed with the Midas’ touch of ingenuous and yet realistic ideas for generating resources within the state and, thereby, achieving for her, the set goals of self-reliance and financial independence as opposed to erstwhile dependence on allocation from the Federation Account.
“This was to be done without imposing heavier burden on the populace and thereby achieving for the state both self-reliance and self-actualisation, as the state’s revenue as it stood then which was a little under N2 billion, in a month was sufficient to meet all its financial obligations with enough left over to provide for and maintain capital projects.
“It is, therefore, not only bewildering but shocking to hear and later discover that Osun State, under Aregbesola’s watch, has accumulated a mind-boggling debt profile, rumoured to be in the region of four hundred billion (N400 billion) to five hundred billion naira (N500 billion) or sum as loan, under the guise that he wanted to raise the ‘infrastructural level’ of the state.”
“The unraveling of the mystery behind the alleged failure of governance in Osun has, therefore, become an imperative for the state assembly members, who are the Constitutional watchdog and as the constitutional instruments charged with the responsibility of applying checks and of balancing the activities of the two other arms of government.
“Only Mr. Governor deserves to take the blame for being profligate with our money, entrusted to him to be administered and distributed as best as possible to serve a common good and not for pursuing selfish expansionist and hegemonistic ideas. I urge this Assembly to call upon Mr. Governor to disclose his health care bill and those of his deputy and their family members.
“I declare, without fear of any serious contradiction, that Mr. Governor’s act of literally ruling the state from Saudi Arabia, Cuba and Lagos is disloyal, neglectful and un-patriotic and is the direct cause of most of Osun’s problem. To begin with, Mr. Governor, did not grow up in Osun, and as such could not really know or understand its people and their challenges as well as their hope and aspirations.
“To our greatest misfortune, however, Mr. Governor chose to spend his time globetrotting, and was ruling and has continued to rule the state and its people at a distance like an emperor, like an army of occupation. Little wonder then, that most of his ideas were like buildings, carefully constructed in a far place, but to be installed for use in a different land, where the land is uneven and cannot be brought in harmony with the constructed buildings.
“Though admittedly idealistic, they almost invariably proved unrealistic and unfeasible, when put into practice in Osun, though they would most likely have worked in Lagos. But Osun is not Lagos, a fact which he would long since have discovered for himself if he had only bothered to stay in the state long enough and that, the aspiration of the average Lagosian is not the aspiration of a typical Osun man.”
“Aregbesola’s deliberate stifling of the judiciary of funds, coupled with his refusal to pay the meager ‘running cost’ or and to pay judges and magistrates their housing and medical allowances or to give them serviceable official vehicles which has resulted in the closure of the state courts in the last six (6) months, amounts to the greatest betrayal and treachery of the ideals of democracy and consequently of the rule of law of which he is one of the greatest beneficiaries.
“Since Mr. Governor and his deputy have consistently shown that they have no regard for our Constitution and our democracy, it has become imperative and pertinent to remind Mr. Governor and his deputy that sovereignty belongs to the people.
“My humble but sincere opinion is that Osun, in spite of the challenges facing her today, is not beyond salvage, it is possible to redeem her image and restore her dignity by employing Constitutional means, to redress the wrong done her and claim damages from those who seek to destroy her right to good governance by plundering her treasury and abandoning her to penury. But to achieve this mission, this august body must need wake up to assert itself and discharge its Constitutional obligations to the people of the state, who repose trust in it.
“And it is to this end and for this reason that I am, and I am sure other well -meaning and concerned members of the Osun community, hereby calling on honourable members of the States’ House of Assembly to pick up the gauntlet and redeem themselves by giving effect to the provisions of Sections 128 and 129 of the Constitution, empowering them to investigate and bring to justice, all those who have corruptly enriched themselves at the expense of Osun, and of her inhabitants.”