By Michael Ofulue, Osogbo
The Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has lauded the decision of the Association of Concerned Local Government Workers of Osun State to resume work on Monday, following a protracted seven-month strike.
The strike, which stemmed from the ongoing local government autonomy crisis in the state, has also led to deep divisions within the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE).
In a statement issued by the party’s spokesperson, Kola Olabisi, the APC described the workers’ decision to return to their duty posts as “patriotic and commendable,” noting that the move will bring relief to stakeholders such as traditional rulers, healthcare workers, primary school teachers, and other essential service providers who have borne the brunt of the impasse.
However, the APC expressed concern over what it described as a deliberate plot by the state government to frustrate the resumption of the workers. The party accused Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration of deploying underhanded tactics, including what it termed the “promotion letter ploy.”
The criticism follows a directive issued on Friday by L. M. Kareem, Permanent Secretary of the Osun State Local Government Service Commission, instructing all local government workers to report at the commission’s headquarters in Abere on Monday, October 6, 2025, to collect their promotion letters.
The APC condemned the directive as ill-timed and counterproductive, describing it as a panic measure and a diversionary tactic aimed at stalling the workers’ return to work.
“The issuance of this directive to workers from far-flung areas such as Ife-Odan, Ifedayo, Ikire, and Ifetedo to travel to Abere simply to collect promotion letters is both unreasonable and insensitive,” the statement read.
The party questioned the logic behind requiring all promoted workers to pick up their letters in person on the same day, noting that such documents could easily be distributed by Directors of Administration in the respective local government areas.
“Is the government suggesting that health centres and other essential offices should shut down just because workers are being forced to travel to Abere?” the APC queried.
Describing the move as “laughable, puerile, and absurd,” the party called on the Adeleke administration to desist from frustrating the peaceful resolution of the crisis.
“The decision by local government workers to resume work is timely and inevitable. No army of saboteurs or naysayers can stop this process,” the statement concluded.