Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji of Ekiti State may soon find himself defending another matter in court. And this time, the controversy concerns his decision to reappoint Mr. Niran Olatona as Executive Chairman of the Ekiti State Internal Revenue Service (EKIRS) for another four years.
I have examined this appointment, considered its implications, and consulted my conscience. I am seriously contemplating legal action.
There are certain decisions a governor should not be allowed to take without being challenged, particularly when such decisions have far-reaching consequences for the political and administrative culture of a state.
The reappointment of Niran Olatona is one of them. Let me explain.
When Olatona was first appointed in November 2022, some of us were not particularly enthusiastic. We knew him as a quiet, humble gentleman, a professional accountant, and a devoted pastor. But we had our reservations.
What exactly could this man achieve in a state where internally generated revenue was struggling and economic opportunities were comparatively limited?
Ekiti was not Lagos, Rivers, or Ogun. Monthly revenue collections were reportedly hovering around ₦600 million to ₦650 million. The challenges were enormous. Some of us doubted his capacity to make any significant difference. Indeed, we had mentally prepared ourselves for another familiar episode of administrative disappointment.
We waited for him to stumble. We expected excuses. We anticipated the usual complaints about the economy, taxpayers’ unwillingness to pay, and the difficulty of mobilising revenue in a predominantly agrarian state.
But Niran Olatona had other ideas. He started quietly. No unnecessary noise. No grandstanding. No intimidating display of official power. He began studying the revenue system, identifying leakages, engaging taxpayers, improving collection processes, and introducing technology.
What particularly caught my attention was his apparent dislike for the crude deployment of force and intimidation in revenue collection.
In Nigeria, tax enforcement can sometimes resemble a military operation. Shops are sealed. Traders are threatened. Businesses are disrupted. Tax officials arrive as though they are going to war. But Olatona increasingly pursued a different philosophy.
He believed that taxpayers could be encouraged to fulfill their obligations through engagement, education, convenience, and trust. To him, the taxpayer was not necessarily an adversary to be subdued. He was a stakeholder to be persuaded. I found this approach rather strange.
How could a revenue chairman hope to increase collections substantially without making taxpayers tremble? But the figures began to emerge. EKIRS reported collections of ₦17.63 billion in 2024.
By 2025, the figure had climbed to ₦27.09 billion. That represented an increase of approximately 53.7 percent. In June 2026, the service announced a monthly collection of ₦2.75 billion.
From monthly collections reportedly hovering around ₦600 million when he arrived, the institution was now recording billions in a single month. Then came another development.
In July 2025, EKIRS suspended active tax enforcement and placed greater emphasis on voluntary compliance. Ordinarily, one would expect such a decision to weaken collections. Yet revenue performance continued to improve. I became increasingly suspicious. And I did not hide my suspicion from the man himself.
One day, I confronted Niran Olatona. I looked him straight in the face and told him, “Niran, if not because I know you to be a first-class pastor, a true man of God, I would have said you are using juju to collect taxes from Ekiti people!”
Yes! I said it to him. Because I was finding it increasingly difficult to understand how a man could achieve such remarkable results without relying heavily on intimidation.
What exactly was his secret? Was it technology? Was it administrative ingenuity? Was it his understanding of the psychology of taxpayers? Or had this pastor discovered something about revenue mobilisation that many public administrators had failed to understand? Whatever the explanation, the figures kept moving.
And then came the StatiSense report. According to figures attributed to StatiSense for January to September 2026, Ekiti State recorded approximately ₦44.58 billion in internally generated revenue, placing it 16th nationally.
Sixteen! For Ekiti! A state that many people had traditionally dismissed as economically disadvantaged!
Although statewide IGR cannot be credited to one official alone, the development provided further evidence of the transformation taking place in the state’s revenue administration. It also raised fresh questions about the role of leadership, institutional reform, technology, and taxpayer cooperation in public finance.
And this is where Governor Oyebanji enters the matter. The governor was fully aware of the developments within EKIRS. He knew the revenue figures. He knew the reforms. He knew the challenges. He knew that Olatona had become an important figure in the state’s revenue mobilisation efforts. Yet, when the man’s tenure came up for renewal, Oyebanji reappointed him. Another four years! I find this decision deeply troubling. Why? Because of the precedent it threatens to establish.
Imagine a situation where public officers begin to believe that their appointments will be assessed on the basis of measurable performance. Imagine a governor who considers competence, innovation, commitment, and institutional progress when deciding whether to retain an appointee. Imagine public officials discovering that results, rather than political theatrics, could determine their future.
Where would that leave our familiar administrative traditions? What happens to the culture of changing officials merely to satisfy political interests? What happens to those who believe that public appointments should be rewards for loyalty, regardless of performance? And what happens to people like us who had already predicted that Niran Olatona would not achieve anything extraordinary?
Governor Oyebanji has put us in a very difficult position. Our predictions have been challenged. Our doubts have been dispelled. Our expectations have been overturned. And now, instead of allowing us the opportunity to celebrate the man’s departure, the governor has given him another four years!
This is unacceptable. I have therefore been examining the possibility of approaching a court of competent jurisdiction.
My proposed action will invite the court to consider whether a governor should be permitted to retain an appointee whose performance has caused such considerable embarrassment to those who doubted him. I shall also seek clarification on whether administrative excellence should now be regarded as a legitimate qualification for continued public service.
Furthermore, I intend to ask the court to consider the psychological consequences of watching a man whom we expected to fail become increasingly successful. There must be some remedy for this kind of disappointment! But there is a problem.
As a lawyer, I have examined the facts and searched for a sustainable cause of action. I have reviewed the evidence. I have considered the possible reliefs. And I have arrived at a most unfortunate conclusion. There is no known cause of action for being embarrassed by another man’s competence.
Neither is it unlawful, in itself, for a governor to reappoint an official who has performed creditably, provided the appointment complies with the applicable law. And so, my proposed litigation has suffered a serious setback before the filing of any originating process.
The evidence has defeated the prospective claimant. Niran Olatona has committed the unforgivable offence of proving his doubters wrong. And Governor Biodun Oyebanji has compounded that offence by rewarding him with another tenure. What an extraordinary conspiracy!
Nevertheless, I must issue a warning. Niran Olatona should not imagine that his second tenure will be an opportunity to relax. He must consolidate the gains already recorded, improve taxpayer confidence, strengthen accountability, and demonstrate that increased revenue can be achieved without unnecessary harassment.
More importantly, Ekiti people must see the benefits of improved revenue collection in infrastructure, public services, and economic opportunities. Because the ultimate achievement of a revenue institution is not merely the billions it collects but the fairness of its methods and the public value created from those collections.
As for Governor Oyebanji, I am watching him closely. If he continues this habit of retaining competent officials, encouraging innovation and rewarding measurable performance, he may soon find himself facing another action in the court of public opinion. And next time, I may be claiming substantial damages for the embarrassment inflicted on those of us who expected failure but were confronted with success.
Governor Oyebanji, consider yourself warned!
Barrister Wale Ojo-Lanr, Sun Natha Alade & Partners, Amubikaun Street, Behind Lister Building, Ring Road, Ibadan, Oyo State
