Osun IPAC crisis deepens as factions demand National Executives’ immediate resignation

A fresh leadership crisis has engulfed the Osun State chapter of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, IPAC, with a faction of political party leaders calling for the immediate resignation of the council’s National Executive Committee over alleged incompetence and bias.

The group also urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to suspend its relationship with the Osun chapter of IPAC until a substantive leadership is elected ahead of the August 15 governorship election.

Addressing a press conference in Osogbo on Saturday, the faction, led by the Osun State acting Chairman of the Democratic Leadership Alliance, DLA, Dr Tosin Odeyemi, rejected the caretaker committee recently constituted by the national leadership of IPAC, describing the action as illegal.

Odeyemi alleged that the caretaker committee was imposed on members without consultation, following the inability of the national leadership to conduct an election after the expiration of the tenure of the immediate past state chairman, Pastor Victor Akande, in February 2026.

He said the state chapter had expected a fresh election after the March 14 exercise was postponed, but lamented that no new date had been communicated by the national secretariat.

“We received, with utmost surprise, the composition of the Caretaker Executives of Inter-Party Advisory Council for Osun State by our National Executives. The letter purportedly signed by the National Chairman and Secretary of IPAC was a joke taken too far,” Odeyemi said.

According to him, “the March 14 election failed because officials assigned to conduct the exercise were absent, while the National Organising Secretary later informed members that a new date would be announced.”

The faction accused the national leadership of abandoning its constitutional responsibility by appointing a caretaker committee instead of conducting an election, insisting that the IPAC constitution does not provide for such an arrangement.

Odeyemi alleged that the composition of the caretaker committee reflected political bias, claiming that party chairmen were selected without the consent of the majority of stakeholders in the state chapter.

“In the interest of a transparent IPAC in Nigeria, we call for the resignation of our National Executive Committee members because they have openly displayed their incompetence and insensitivity to the yearnings of majority members of the council,” he said.

The group maintained that it wants a transparent, free and inclusive election for the Osun IPAC leadership, stressing that it would not recognise the caretaker committee constituted by the national body.

Responding to questions from journalists, Odeyemi said INEC should distance itself from the Osun chapter of IPAC until the leadership dispute is resolved.

He insisted that the council required a legitimately elected executive to effectively represent political parties ahead of the August 15 Osun State governorship election.