The Insight Initiative for Community and Social Development (IICSD) has challenged local government chairmen elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State to disclose how they have been spending council funds, insisting that residents deserve full accountability on public expenditure.
The organisation also alleged that the council officials were executing projects without budgets approved by the appropriate legislative houses.
The Executive Director of IICSD, Mr. Jare Tiamiyu, made the call on Friday during an interactive session with civil society organisations and media professionals on local government administration in Osun State and the lingering leadership crisis affecting the councils.
Tiamiyu said efforts by the organisation to obtain details of expenditure by the APC-led local government administrations had been unsuccessful, alleging that the council chairmen had failed to respond to repeated inquiries.
He explained that the intervention was part of the Osun Open Local Government Project, an initiative aimed at promoting transparency in local government administration and ensuring that residents have access to information on governance, revenue and expenditure.
According to him, the level of transparency and accountability displayed by the APC-led local government administrations in the first half of 2026 had fallen short of public expectations.
Tiamiyu disclosed that over the last nine months, the organisation had implemented the second phase of the Osun Open Local Government Project, holding various engagements and organising capacity-building sessions for local government chairmen on citizens’ participation in budget preparation and procurement processes that align with modern governance standards.
He further revealed that IICSD had developed Amoye, a chatbot designed to make information on local government administration more accessible to residents through WhatsApp, including voice note interactions.
The Executive Director maintained that public office holders entrusted with local government funds have a responsibility to explain how such resources are spent, stressing that the funds belong to the people.
He also questioned the legality of the projects being executed by the APC council chairmen, alleging that the budgets presented by the local government administrations were not passed by their respective legislative houses.
Tiamiyu said the organisation had engaged the council chairmen directly and also sent Freedom of Information (FOI) requests seeking details of the projects, budgetary provisions and expenditure but claimed that the requests were ignored.
He appealed to the media to demand accountability from the council officials by asking them to disclose the amount accessed from local government allocations, including previously withheld funds and fresh allocations, as well as a breakdown of how the money had been spent.
While acknowledging that salaries paid to traditional rulers and council officials were statutory obligations, Tiamiyu insisted that residents were entitled to know the total amount spent and the balance remaining in the councils’ accounts.
He also criticised local government workers, alleging that they had contributed to the challenges facing council administration in the state.
According to him, many workers receive salaries without carrying out their duties effectively, claiming that some simply remain in their offices until closing hours without rendering meaningful service.
Tiamiyu called on the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) to demonstrate patriotism and work in the interest of the people, noting that local government administration in Osun State had remained disrupted for about 20 months and should not be allowed to continue.
