The governing of Ekiti state too another dimension on Monday as seven peoples democratic party, PDP members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly impeached the Speaker of the of the assembly, Rt. Hon. Adewale Omirin, according to reports from DailyPost.
Omirin and Governor Ayodele Fayose have been at loggerheads since the swearing-in of the governor.
Fayose has accused the speaker and other All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers in the House of frustrating his government by rejecting the list of Commissioners sent to the Assembly
But Omirin described the governor’s action as blackmail.
Gov. Ayodele Fayose is billed swear-in Caretaker Committees in the 18 local government areas of the state this morning without the approval of the House.
DailyPost further gathered that the seven PDP legislators have also installed one of their own Dele Olugbemi as the acting Speaker.
The PDP has seven members in the house while APC has 18, excluding the speaker.
PDP lawmaker, Dele Olugbemi appointed as acting speaker.
The Ekiti State House of Assembly, this morning denied impeaching its Speaker, Dr. Olawale Omirin. According to the lawmakers, an acting speaker was only appointed to allow it carry out urgent business of the assembly in the absence of the substantive speaker and his deputy. The action was purportedly carried out by the seven Peoples Democratic Party, PDP members in the house.
A PDP lawmaker, Dele Olugbemi was appointed as acting speaker.
According to the House, the action was taken because there are pending issues that require the approval of the House in order to move the government of Ekiti State forward.
The latest action of the seven PDP members of the House is coming on the heels of accusation and counter accusations that has characterised governance in the state since Gov. Peter Ayodele Fayose took over from Dr. Kayode Fayemi.
It will be recalled that the House of Assembly under the leadership of All Progressives Congress, APC lawmakers, has been at loggerheads with the state governor, Fayose. The governor has on different occasions accused the speaker, Dr. Omirin of trying to derail his government by refusing to approve the list of appointees into the state executive council and caretaker committees of local governments areas in the state sent to the assembly. The speaker denied this, saying the governor was only trying to blackmail him.
APC raises alarm over PDP-instigated, police-backed impunity in Ekiti
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has raised the alarm over a PDP-led and police-backed acts of impunity in Ekiti State, where only seven members of the 26-strong House of Assembly on MondayMonday Morning convened the House to carry out an agenda, dictated by Gov. Ayodele Fayose, that includes the impeachment of the Speaker.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said over 200 armed policemen are currently offering protection to the seven PDP members of the House, who convened purposely to impeach the Speaker, approve the list of Commissioners-designate as well as the Caretaker Committees for the local councils in the state.
”The issue of the Caretaker Committees, which Gov. Ayodele Fayose plans to swear in on Monday after the illegal approval by the House, is sub judice, hence the House cannot even discuss it not to talk of acting on it. Also, while the Governor was advised by the Clerk of the House that seven members out of 26 do not form a quorum, he said after all, only eight of 24 members in the Plateau House of Assembly impeached then Gov, Joshua Dariye in 2006!” it said.
APC said that ahead of what is clearly the height of impunity by a democratically-elected Government, the utility services in the official residence of the House Speaker, including electricity supply, have been cut off while his salaries and allowances have been stopped. Others acts of intimidation have been directed at the Speaker by the state authorities.
”We know that President Goodluck Jonathan, who is the leader of the PDP, has elevated impunity to an art, but he has simply overreached himself with his party’s latest show of shame in Ekiti. The fact that the President’s body language supports impunity has emboldened officials elected under the banner of the PDP and appointed by his Administration to perpetrate acts of impunity with impunity.
”Over 200 policemen could not have been deployed for this illegal act in Ekiti without the knowledge of the Inspector General of Police. Yet, the same IG trampled the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by assuming the powers of the court to unilaterally withdraw the security detail of House of Representatives Speaker Aminu Tambuwal.
”Can the IG claim not to be aware that his men are offering protection to only seven out of the 26 members of the Ekiti House of Assembly? Does he honestly believe it is part of the responsibility of the police, which is being funded by tax payers, to become the enforcement arm of the PDP? Does he believe that the police that is empowered to enforce the law should play a lead role in breaking it?” the party queried.
It warned the excitable and depthless Gov. Fayose of Ekiti not to throw the state into a needless crisis by his trademark tomfoolery.
APC also warned that while a lot of unconstitutional and illegal activities have taken place under the PDP-led Federal Government, including the impeachment of then Gov Joshua Dariye of Plateau State by only eight out of 24 members of the State House of Assembly, any decision taken by only seven PDP members in the 26-member Ekiti House of Assembly will not stand.
The party called on the PDP and the Federal Government to stop instigating crisis in APC-controlled states, saying the PDP-instigated crisis in the Edo State House of Assembly has yet to subside before the anarchic ruling party decided to pounce on Ekiti.
No matter how long it takes, those who are willfully flouting the laws of the land and engaging in anti-democratic actions will come to justice. Nothing in the world will justify the subversion of the Constitution by anyone, especially those who are democratically-elected. We are therefore warning the puppeteers in Ekiti to put a leash on their dogs of war, and not to set Ekiti state ablaze over their narrow interests,” it said.
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