Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed has charged the newly elected Local Government Chairmen, a Commissioner and six Special Advisers to justify public confidence through competence, integrity and effective service.

He charged the newly sworn-in chairmen of the 20 local government areas in the state to ensure transparency and accountability in the management of council funds.

The governor, who gave the charge during their swearing-in ceremony held at the State Government House, said consistent Local Government elections since 2019 demonstrated his administration’s commitment to strengthening democracy and effective governance at grassroots in the state.

He warned the chairmen against misappropriating local government funds, stressing that the financial autonomy granted to councils had placed greater responsibility on them to deliver good governance at the grassroots.

“You must not be tempted to misappropriate or divert local government funds. With financial autonomy now granted to local governments to run their affairs, you have no excuse for poor performance,” he said.

Mohammed urged the chairmen to regard their positions as an opportunity to serve the people rather than an avenue for personal gain or sharing public resources.

According to him, the people now have higher expectations of the newly elected council officials because of their proximity and accessibility to the grassroots.

“The position of local government is no longer a place where we go and share money. We go there to face challenges because the required human capacity, trust and confidence of the people must be built,” he said.

Osun Police Chief Challenges State Speaker to Provide Alleged ‘Shoot-on-Sight’ Order

The Osun State Police Command, has challenged the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Hon. Adewale Olumide Egbedun, to provide evidence of the alleged “shoot-on-sight” order purportedly issued to police officers in the state.

The Command denied issuing such a directive, describing the allegation as false and malicious and capable of tarnishing the image of the Nigeria Police Force and undermining the good work done by its personnel during the August 15, 2026 governorship election.

Speaking with our correspondent on behalf of the Commissioner of Police, CP Ibrahim Gotan, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, said no police officer under the Commissioner’s command was instructed to shoot persons found within Local Government Council premises.

“There was no such order and no such directive was given to any policeman to shoot at sight,” Gotan said.

The Command, therefore, challenged the Speaker or anyone making the allegation to produce the purported order or any evidence showing that such an instruction was issued.

Ojelabi said the allegation would not distract the Command from its constitutional responsibility of protecting lives and property, maintaining law and order and ensuring the safety of residents across the state.

The controversy followed a statement by Egbedun, in which he expressed grave concern over reports alleging that the Commissioner had directed police personnel to adopt a “shoot-on-sight” policy against persons found within Local Government Council premises.

The Speaker had described the alleged directive, if confirmed, as unacceptable in a democratic society and called on the Inspector-General of Police to investigate the matter and clarify the operational orders issued to police formations in Osun.

But the police maintained that there was no such directive, describing the allegation as an attempt to cast the Force in a bad light.

According to the Command, its personnel demonstrated professionalism, discipline and restraint before, during and after the governorship election, contributing to the peaceful atmosphere recorded across the state. (This Day)

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