Tension in Ekiti as 10 lawmakers approve Fayose’s commissioners

    Tension rose at the premises of the Ekiti state House of Assembly on Monday as 10 of the 26- assembly member approved the lists of three commissioner nominees, 12 special advisers and the governor’s request to reconstitute the dissolved 16 local governments under a tight security. The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) alleged […]

 

 

Tension rose at the premises of the Ekiti state House of Assembly on Monday as 10 of the 26- assembly member approved the lists of three commissioner nominees, 12 special advisers and the governor’s request to reconstitute the dissolved 16 local governments under a tight security.

The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) alleged that only seven members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of the assembly sat and approved the lists without any members of the APC in attendance.

At the sitting, both the Speaker,  Adewale Omirin and Deputy Speaker, Chief Adetunji Orisalade, were absent.

However, in the absence of the speaker and deputy speaker, Hon Dele Olugbemi, was nominated as speaker to preside over the sitting.

The motion for the nomination of the speaker pro-tempo was moved by Hon Samuel Ajibola from Ekiti East Constituency 2 and supported by Hon Olayinka Abeni.

Ajibola said the house was empowered under Section 27 of the House Standing Order to sit and nominate a speaker in the absence of the speaker or deputy speaker.

After ushering in the ‘new’ speaker, Ajibola read the three letters sent to the house by the governor seeking the screening and confirmation of Barrister Owoseni Ajayi (Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice), Chief Toyin Ojo (Finance) and Kayode Oso (Works and Transport) as commissioners; requests to appoint as special advisers and power to reconstitute the16 dissolved councils.

After a short deliberation on the nominees, the 10 legislators approved all the governor’s requests.

The three new commissioners served as commissioners holding the same portfolios under Fayose during his first tenure in 2003 to 2006 before he was impeached under a controversial circumstance.

As soon as the governor got the nod to reconstitute the caretaker committees for the councils, the governor, who had earlier scheduled the inauguration of the new council caretakers for 10am eventually had them inaugurated by 12.55pm apparently waiting for the nod of the assembly.

 Ajibola, the mover of the motion, after the sitting,  said 10 lawmakers sat adding that “but only nine members were needed to form a quorum.”

Responding to a question, Ajibola said “there is no PDP or APC lawmakers in the assembly, we are all Ekiti lawmakers and our job is to make laws for good governance in Ekiti state.”

There are 26 members in the assembly made up of seven PDP and 19 APC members.

The sitting was conducted under a tensed atmosphere as riot policemen were sighted within and outside the assembly’s complex with two Armoured Personnel Carriers stationed at strategic locations outside the assembly.