Governor Ademola Adeleke has denied that his government bears responsibility for the ongoing strike by the Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) in Osun State Judiciary, insisting the matter lies solely within the authority of the state’s Chief Judge.
The denial came in response to a letter dated December 8, 2025, from the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) branches in Osun, which accused him and his Judicial Service Commission (JSC) appointees of contributing to the paralysis of the judiciary.
In an official statement released on Tuesday, the governor rejected the assertions as misrepresentations. He reaffirmed his commitment to constitutional governance, the rule of law and a functioning judiciary, but said the strike resulted from the Chief Judge’s failure to convene any meeting of the JSC or implement the terms of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed with JUSUN after the 2024 strike.
Adeleke challenged the Chief Judge and the NBA to present evidence of any JSC meeting called in the last two years despite repeated letters and reminders from both the Attorney General and JUSUN. He said that during the previous strike, he personally intervened — on February 6, 2024, he met the National President of JUSUN, Comrade Marwan Mustapha Adamu, after which JUSUN held a meeting with the Chief Judge. That engagement led to a tripartite MOA signed on February 16, 2024, by JUSUN’s National President, the State Attorney-General and the Chief Registrar of the High Court.
The MOA pledged to among others reinstate suspended staff, promote qualified judiciary workers, withdraw pending cases, pay 2023 robe allowances and consider overdue 2021/2022 allowances, develop a proper scheme of service, prevent victimisation, and respect the oversight powers of the National Judicial Council (NJC).
Governor Adeleke said that failure to implement the MOA lies within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Chief Judge and not his office. He reiterated his readiness to support lawful measures that will restore judicial operations and end the disruption affecting court users across the state.
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