Ogun Assembly Crisis Deepens As Lawmaker Breaks Mace

The crisis in Ogun State House of Assembly deepened yesterday with the purported suspension of four members and the breaking of the mace at a rowdy session.

The session commenced at 11 a.m with all the 26 lawmakers in attendance.

After preliminary matters, the Speaker of the Assembly, Mr Suraj Adekunbi, recalled an alleged unruly behaviour of four members of the Assembly during the previous sitting.

The members are Remmy Hazzan, Job Akintan, John Obafemi and Mrs Adijat Adeleye-Oladapo.

Adekunbi said the four members walked out on all other members without taking a bow at the previous sitting, contrary to the rule of the House.

Reacting to the issue, the Majority Leader, Mr Israel Jolaosho, described the act as disrespectful to the office of the Speaker and moved a motion for the suspension of the four members.

While the Speaker called for a secondment of the motion, Adeleye-Oladapo, one of the affected members sitting close to the mace broke the symbol of authority.

The Speaker, however, went ahead and announced the suspension of the four members and immediately called for a recess.

The suspended lawmakers, along with 10 other legislators, however, reconvened immediately under the leadership of Hazzan and reversed the suspension order.

The group, which later addressed newsmen, claimed that the four lawmakers were illegally suspended since there was no secondment of the motion.

“The Speaker ought to put the question before the House and those in favour will say yes and those against will say no; nothing of such was done.

“The Speaker does not possess a unilateral power to suspend any member of the House,” Hazzan said.

He alleged that the crisis was caused by the attempt to perpetuate fraud through contract award.