The suspended lawmakers are Jamiu Akeem, Arobasoye Adeoye, Bode Adeoye, Lateef Adeoye, Lukas Akanle, Lukas Toyin, Deji Ajayi and Demola Ojo.
At least eight members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly have been suspended indefinitely over the illegal impeachment of the Assembly Speaker, Gboyega Aribisogan on Monday.
The suspended lawmakers are Jamiu Akeem, Arobasoye Adeoye, Bode Adeoye, Lateef Adeoye, Lukas Akanle, Lukas Toyin, Deji Ajayi and Demola Ojo.
This was confirmed by the Speaker of the House, Aribisogan after the illegal impeachment.
Mr Aribisogan said the suspended lawmakers held a plenary session today (Monday) with some other hired people to institute an impeachment process against him, amid tight security.
He said, “As I speak with you, the principal officers of the Ekiti State House of Assembly have just concluded our meeting. Going by what has happened in the Assembly this morning, and the illegality that took place, we have decided that those who perpetrated this heinous crime against the state should be suspended forthwith.
“And the names of members that are affected are Hon. Jamiu Akeem, Hon Arobasoye Adeoye, Hon Bode Adeoye, Hon Lateef Adeoye, Hon. Lukas Akanle, Lukas Toyin, Hon Deji Ajayi, Hon Demola Ojo from Ijero, all these that I have mentioned, have been suspended forthwith for bringing in the police and harassing the Clerk and everybody to institute that illegal impeachment.”
Speaking further on the fifteen members of the House that voted for him as the Speaker last Tuesday to defeat former Governor Kayode Fayemi’s candidate, Olubunmi Adelugba, he said, “Yes. I have them intact. What they did this morning was to go and rent some people to equate the number to meet 14. They are not true representatives of the people. They are a rented crowd led by Olugbemi, former Speaker of the House.”
The leadership squabble has been rocking the house since last week.
Last Wednesday, SaharaReporters reported that the police invaded the Ekiti State House of Assembly over an alleged security threat to prevent Aribisogan from taking charge.
Aribisogan was elected as the new Speaker of the House of Assembly following the death of the late Speaker, Funminyi Afuye.
The invasion of the Assembly complex by the police last Wednesday over an alleged security threat was a ruse to prevent Aribisogan from taking charge, sources had told SaharaReporters.
On Sunday night, in an interview on Channels TV, Aribisogan said there were plans to impeach him on Monday (today) and that Fayemi had lodged seven lawmakers he wanted to use in a Guest House.
Aribisogan also accused Fayemi of being behind the crisis in the House of Assembly and sponsoring some disgruntled lawmakers and armed thugs to impeach him.
“The majority of members of Assembly voted for me but few of them who felt perhaps I did not follow the directive of the former governor, Dr Fayemi, thought that they would make the state ungovernable for even the administration,” Aribisogan had said.
“I didn’t have any quarrel with him (Fayemi). I sent a message to him even last night asking, ‘What is happening? Am I no longer one of your loyalists? Why did you not congratulate me?’
“Up till now that I’m speaking with you, he has not done anything. Otherwise, he has been going around calling our members to go and impeach me tomorrow. That is the truth.”
Some lawmakers in the House of Assembly were in a closed-door session in the Assembly complex earlier on Monday.
The Assembly complex was under tight security while the impeachment was going on as armed police officers were on Monday stationed around the legislative building.