The Speaker, Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dr. Adewale Omirin, has
accused Governor Ayodele Fayose of freezing the bank accounts of the state
House of Assembly.
He also expressed worry over alleged “incessant blackmail and
intimidation” of the Assembly by the governor over the refusal of the 19 All
Progressives Congress members to defect to the Peoples Democratic Party. The
PDP has seven members in the Assembly.
He alleged that the action of the governor ran contrary to the dictates
of democracy.
But Fayose has described the allegations as “untrue,” saying that Omirin
was only playing politics.
He also denied asking anybody to either insult or assault the Speaker.
The Speaker, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Wole
Olujobi, described the latest allegation that the Assembly demanded N135m for
the screening of commissioner nominees “as a propaganda taken too far.”
Omirin, who said he would not have reacted if not for the public that
could be deceived by the allegations, expressed worry over reports portraying
the legislature as working against the governor’s bid to constitute his
cabinet.
Describing some media reports on the nominees as misleading, Omirin
explained that, “The standard practice is to present the list of the nominees
in the plenary while the nominees will follow with the submission of their
credentials. They will be screened before confirmation.
“The governor sent three nominees on Monday and the list was read in the
Parliament that day. Since it is a public document, we read the letter on the
second day in the plenary. Nobody submitted any credential. We don’t know the
nominees.
“They have not submitted their credentials for the appropriate
committees to screen them. It is surprising that the governor expects the House
to confirm the nominees as sent. This is strange in parliamentary conduct.”
Omirin regretted that the governor responded by freezing the bank
accounts of the House of Assembly, saying one arm of government cannot close
down the activities of the other.
He said, “How can you elevate intimidation and blackmail to an art of
governance? The Chief Judge was blackmailed that he took a bribe of N20m to
stall hearing on local council development areas case and another N200m to
reassign the E-Eleven’s perjury case to Justice Olusegun Ogunyemi to return a
guilty verdict on the governor.
“After the judiciary had been blackmailed to submission, it is now the
turn of the parliament to be brought to its knees by blackmailing members and
freezing the accounts of the House as if the House is a department in the
Governor’s Office.”
According to him, PDP thugs in the wee hours of Tuesday stormed and
ransacked the homes of members of the legislature, who included Kayode Fasakin,
Kehinde Boluwade and Olasehinnde Ogunrinde, after the Assembly pointed out to
the governor that the subsisting case on the local government was responsible
for the Assembly’s refusal to treat his request for the reconstitution of the
LGAs.
Omirin threatened Fayose that the legislators mentioned in the bribery
allegation would seek redress in court.
He added that the Ekiti State broadcasting radio and television stations
would be sued for libel over their broadcasts.
But Fayose, in a reaction by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Idowu
Adelusi, said, “The allegations are very untrue. Governor Fayose has not
ordered the freezing of the account of the State House of Assembly. And neither
has the governor asked anybody to either insult or assault the Speaker.
“The Speaker is only playing politics and maligning the governor. The
Speaker should understand that today Fayose is his governor, and the office is
sacred, he is the symbol of Ekiti people.
“If he, in the name of politics, continues to denigrate that office, he
is denigrating Ekiti people. Also, if the Omirin-led House has refused to
screen the nominees sent to them, it is a disservice to Ekiti people.
“They should know that they have not bruised Fayose by their actions but
Ekiti people, who earnestly demand for progress and good governance by voting
for Fayose. Ekiti people are watching them and their dirty politics. If anybody
has assaulted him, the police are there to report the matter to instead of
accusing the governor of threat.”
Tags
Politics