This is not about politics. I am very serious about this matter. I hope all is well with the Governor of Oyo state?
I have seen the reports which says that Governor Seyi Makinde has set up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry Into the Oriire Teachers and Pupils abduction. I had to read the story more than once to be sure that I was actually not hallucinating.
For the avoidance of doubt, this is not a petty matter. It is a constitutional issue and discussions around it must not be allowed to reach the level of a beer parlor argument.
Don’t get me wrong and before Governor Makinde’s lickspittles begin to misinterpret my concerns for fear, let me set the record straight.
Governor Seyi Makinde has been consistent in his suspicion about the abduction and the eventual release of the Teachers and Pupils at Oriire Local Government.
In fact, immediately the unfortunate incident happened, he told the public that the abduction happened the following day he announced his presidential ambition on the 14th of May, 2026. He repeated same sentiments at Bauchi on the day the victims were rescued, implying that the abduction might have something to do with his presidential ambition.
To drive his points home, he made a broadcast where he called on the United Nations and other International Bodies to investigate the circumstances surrounding the abduction and the rescue of the abducted victims. I remember telling him then that whether the International Bodies would respond to his call for investigation or not , he needed to file a formal request first, instead of making spurious allegations through a state broadcast. I do not think he took my advice.
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Now, Governor Seyi Makinde wants a Commission of Inquiry, instituted by him, through a state legislation, to inquire into the activities, mostly, if not totally supervised by Federal Security Forces and Agencies!
Who is advising this Governor? Who is the Attorney-General of Oyo state? What is he telling this Governor?
I am asking these questions because the blunders committed by this Government, when it comes to the interpretation of the Law, are just too many and costly.
A very terrible error was committed in Eruwa. Governor Seyi Makinde disobeyed the judgments of all the layers of Courts in Nigeria while installing one Samuel Adebayo Adegbola as the Eleruwa of Eruwa. That is not the only time Governor Makinde would disobey Court judgement. He is currently disobeying the judgment of the Court of Appeal with respect to the Park Management System.
Now, I want the Oyo state Attorney-General to answer these questions, for all intents and purposes, can a Commission of Inquiry instituted by the Oyo state Government legally compel, direct, or exercise supervisory control over Federal Institutions?
Is Governor Seyi Makinde and the Attorney-General aware that National Security and Federal law enforcement are placed exclusively, on the Executive Legislative list and that a state can not legislate on, direct, or structurally regulate Federal Government Agencies?
The operations of a Commission of Inquiry are considered to be quasi-judicial. If that is the case, will the Commission of Inquiry have the jurisdiction to call Federal Security Forces and Agencies as witnesses or for whatever purposes their attention might be required?
Could the Commission of Inquiry do its job effectively without the attendance of security Agencies?
The rescue operation happened about two weeks ago. According to security Agencies, some of the Bandits were arrested. Some were reportedly neutralized. It is assumed that many of them might have escaped and efforts still on to apprehend them.
It was reported that some of the apprehend Bandits have been taken to court.
That episode does not appear to me like one that has been closed.
What does Governor Makinde and his Attorney general understand about classification and declassification of information on criminal matters?
At this point, what is the level of information that could be reasonably released about that incident?
Four people were gunned down in Eruwa in 2021 during a Local Government election conducted by Governor Seyi Makinde. Mukaila Auxiliary and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP thugs were fingered.
Those are the kind of incidents Governor Makinde ought to have constituted a Commission of Inquiry to investigate.
There was another massacre at Igangan in 2023 when Governor Seyi Makinde went to campaign at the town. He didn’t set a Commission of Inquiry to look into the unfortunate incident. A Commission of Inquiry set up by him would have had the jurisdiction to inquire into such incidents, but we had none.
Governor Makinde seems to know something all of us don’t know about the Oriire abduction and for me, I think the best way to handle the information is for him to have said something since he knew something.
These unfortunate theatrics does not fit someone of his caliber. A whole state Governor. The Commission of Inquiry is a still birth and I have a feeling that Governor Seyi Makinde knows this facts. He is only acting a script.
The unfortunate part is that while the Drama lasted, the resources of Oyo state would suffer further damages.
We will not allow Governor Makinde to deceive the public. We will keep exposing his hypocrisy at every time he comes up to play his deceitful scripts. The Commission of Inquiry is a waste of time and public resources.
Governor Makinde has immunity. If he says what he thinks he knows which some of us don’t know, no one will arrest or harass him.
I kept saying this, why would anyone worry because Governor Makinde announced his presidential ambition? If Atiku and Obi are not being witch hunted, why would anyone worry about Governor Makinde?
I think I must also quickly say this, let no one come and tell us that Tinubu is harassing him with Anti-corruption Agencies because of a Commission of Inquiry. If you have embezzled public funds, you will face the music. Simple.
Before I round up this piece, I hope Governor Seyi Makinde remembers the fact that the Speaker of the Oyo state House of Assembly, Adebo Ogundoyin, was the first person who broke the news to the public that the abductors were making certain demands which included carving out a particular place within Oyo state for the Bandits to be operating from and that they were asking for monies to be paid into some Bank accounts in a neighbouring Country amongst other demands?
I hope Governor Makinde remembers that the bandits later came out to deny these facts?
So, will the inquiry start from Debo Ogundoyin and will the Governor guarantees the fact that Debo would provide information on how he came about such information which were later refuted by the bandits because I noticed that he has been silent about this salient fact.
Sometimes, when you set out, searching for the one who owed your mother, if you don’t return from the search in time, you would eventually come across the person your father was owing until he passed away.
At least, the Commission of Inquiry shouldn’t have any issues inviting Debo Ogundoyin.
I am also sure that Governor Makinde remembers that the Honourable member representing Oriire Local Government in the Oyo state House of Assembly was reported to have raised the alarm about strange and suspicious movements of people from the Forest around the Local Government some years ago?
This alarm was allegedly raised by the Honorable member on the floor of the Oyo state House of Assembly and I am not aware of any steps taken by the Governor regarding the reported alarm raised by the gentleman.
Will Governor Seyi Makinde expand the scope of the investigation to also cover this important facts?
It is public knowledge that the Federal Government had said that it welcome Governor Makinde’s invitation to the United Nations for an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the abduction and the rescue operation of the victims of the Oriire abduction.
Why is the Governor now changing course? Has he just realized that his calls on the International Bodies were misplaced and he wants to safe his face by constituting a Judicial Commission of Inquiry?
There should be a limit to how mischievous a man is prepared to be in life.
I know that Governor Seyi Makinde always enjoy to be in the News and he doesn’t seem to care whether it is for good or bad reasons.
It appears like, it just occurred to him, to treat us to another round of amusement.
Sadly, the dignity of the office he occupies is at stake and most unfortunately, the resources of the State are about to be wasted on another wild goose chase but what can we do?
We have until May 29, 2027, to keep managing what we have in our hands.
Sola Abegunde.
