Fayose loyalist impeached as speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly ahead of Fayemi's inauguration

EKITI State is already up in turmoil ahead of the change of government next week as members of the state house of assembly have switched camp to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and impeached the speaker Kola Oluwawole.

With barely five days to the change of government, an ally of outgoing governor Ayo Fayose, Mr Oluwawole, was impeached yesterday as the speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly. He was removed alongside the deputy speaker Sina Animasaun by a combination 14 lawmakers from the APC and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Following the impeachment, an APC lawmaker Adeniran Alagbada, was elected as the new speaker while Segun Adewumi, was returned to his former post of deputy speaker. Minority leader Gboyega Aribisogan was elected new house leader of business while former chief whip Sunday Akinniyi is the new minority leader and Ojo-Ade Fajana is the new deputy house leader, while Mrs Cecilia Dada is chief whip and Musa Arogundade is the deputy chief whip.

In addition, the assembly also suspended Oluwawole and 11 other lawmakers for 125 legislative days. Other lawmakers suspended include Animasaun, Samuel Omotoso, Wale Onigiobi, Wale Ayeni, Dare Pelemo, Samuel Jeje, Dayo Akinleye, Dele Fajemilehin, Tope Fasanmi, Tunji Akinyele and Sanya Aladeyelu.

Addressing reporters after plenary, Hon Aribisogan said Hon Oluwawole and other PDP lawmakers were suspended for alleged complicity in the disappearance of N60m from the Assembly. He added that they were also suspended for alleged ineptitude, following their alleged connivance with the governor to destroy the assembly’s reputation with their attitudes.

Hon Aribisogan added that under Hon Oluwawole, the assembly was poorly funded, became a subservient of the executive while the speakership position was hijacked by powerful members due to their closeness to the governor. According to him, Hon Oluwawole betrayed the Ekiti people by holding a secret plenary last month with other suspended members to approve N10bn supplementary budget Governor Fayose sent to the assembly.

 “Today, we held a plenary session which was a follow-up to the plenary we held yesterday and we carried out changes in the leadership of the assembly. When the PDP members were busy doing the presidential primary in Port Harcourt, we were busy here strategising how best to make Ekiti better for the incoming administration of Dr Kayode Fayemi.

“Fourteen members sat to make these changes, we have 26 members in this assembly and we needed just nine to form a quorum. Our actions were guided by the standing orders of this assembly, we didn’t deviate from it, so, the quorum was formed and our actions are legal and constitutional,” Hon Aribisogan added.

He stressed that the PDP remains the majority party in the assembly while those who removed some principal officers did so in the overriding interest of Ekiti people. In his acceptance speech, Hon Alagbada expressed appreciation to his colleagues for the confidence they reposed in him.