Plot to sack Ekiti Speaker, others uncovered , Ado-Ekiti Indicationsemerged at the weekend that some members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly have commenced moves to effect a change in the legislature’s leadership. Sunday Independentgathered that the lawmakers, said to be from Ekiti North Senatorial District, among other reasons, want to maintain a balance in power, since the incoming governor, Ayo Fayose, is from Ekiti Central. Though the incumbent Speaker, Adewale Omirin, is from Ekiti South Senatorial Zone, the lawmakers were also said to have been alienated by low patronage by the executive during the almost four years tenure of the Speaker. Other principal officers in the Assembly are also under threat, if the plot succeeds. Since Fayose is from Ekiti Central and his deputy, Olusola Eleka, from Ekiti South, the same as Omirin, the plan is for the new Speaker to come from Ekiti North. The All Progressives Congress (APC) has 25 out 26 seats in the House, leaving People’s Democratic Party (PDP) with only one member. But, Omirin has dismissed the plot to sack him as Speaker, office saying the Assembly remains a united entity. Speaking through his Special Adviser on Media, Wole Olujobi, Omirin said the rumour was false, noting that the unity among members was a thing of pride to members and Ekiti people in general. The source said the incumbent governor is from Ekiti North, his deputy, Modupe Adelabu, from Ekiti Central, while the Speaker, is from the South senatorial district. Another reason behind the purported call for a change of leadership was the fact that the lawmakers had recently lamented during a visit to a national leader of the party in Lagos, expressing dismay over how Fayemi had allegedly treated them in the last three and half years due to seeming weak leadership. The source said the lawmakers later resorted to the new tactic when they returned to Ekiti, seeing the Speaker’s removal as the best way to get at the governor. The source said: “The Speaker may be removed anytime from now, unless he can play a fast game. Some APC lawmakers are bent on removing him at all cost, not only to balance the political equation, but also to punish him for the sins he committed under Fayemi. “Some of them were of the opinion that Omirin was imposed on them by the governor. They believe he was too loyal and timid to confront Fayemi on various issues, which had not been in the overall interest of members, particularly in the area of finance. “The lawmakers were not happy that they could not make enough money under Fayemi because of the Speaker’s docility. So, the time to take their pound of flesh is now and only God can save him,” he said. However, the Speaker said, “We have been working harmoniously together in this House with the spirit of disciplined party men and women for more than three years. We have made our people, the state and ourselves in general proud in the way we have conducted ourselves. “This House is the most productive of all the Houses of Assembly in the country. Instead of engaging in what will distort that record and rubbish our integrity, the honourable members are aware of their place in history and so would not engage in any rancour that will rubbish their sterling performance over the years,” Omirin said. He urged Ekiti people to continue to have faith in their elected representatives in the House of Assembly, with the assurance that members would not betray them in any way.
Posted on: Mon, 13 Oct 2014 07:10:00 +0000
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