Eighteen lawmakers of the Ondo State House of Assembly have protested against the move by the embattled Speaker of the House, Bamidele Oloyeloogun, to suspend the factional speaker, Olamide George.
The lawmakers shunned the traditional voice vote of the house when Oleyeloogun directed that George be suspended after some petitions written against the factional speaker were read at the floor of the house.
In the petition, George was accused of addressing himself as the Speaker of the House in a letter written to the Debt Management Office, DMO, that it should cease to do business with Ondo State Government.
According to the petitions, the letter addressed to the DMO was also signed by 16 lawmakers, who signed the impeachment notice against the embattled Speaker, Oleyeloogun.
Though some of the lawmakers, who signed the impeachment notice and were also present at the plenary, denied their involvement in the letter, they stated that their signatures were forged.
Oloyeloogun, who presided over the plenary, stated that the letter brought the House to disrepute, and directed that George be suspended after he had directed that a 5-member committee headed by Sule Maito be constituted to investigate the letter and petitions against George.
However, Oleyeloogun was stunned when none of the lawmakers refused to agree to his position on the suspension of George as they ignore the traditional voting pattern of the house when the question was asked by the embattled Speaker.
The former Deputy Speaker and erstwhile Majority Leader of the house, Fatai Olotu and Gbenga Akinsoyinnu respectively, who were among the 16 lawmakers that impeached the leadership, immediately informed the Speaker that the house can only act when the committee’s report is ready.
They argued that the Speaker should allow the committee to do its work by giving the indicted lawmaker, George, a fair-hearing, and not by taking unilateral decision geared towards suspending George by all means.
Similarly, the Deputy Speaker, Ogundeji Iroju, who was allegedly impeached with the Speaker, urged the leadership of the House to rescind the suspension till the committee report is delivered at the House.
Oloyeloogun revoked the suspension and tasked other committee members to report to the Assembly within three weeks,
The house subsequently adjourned sitting to January 11, 2019.
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