Ekiti Assembly Impeaches Week-Old Speaker, Elects Adelugba

The Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Gboyega Aribisogan, has been impeached, one week after his election to the position.
He has also been replaced with Olubunmi Adelugba from Emure Constituency.
Seventeen out of the 25 members of the House made the change at a sitting of the lawmakers in Ado-Ekiti on Monday.
Aribisogan’s impeachment came barely a week after he was elected to replace Funminiyi Afuye, who died recently.
His election angered party leaders who had endorsed Mrs Adelugba as the new Speaker.
Following the tension that accompanied his emergence, the police shut down the assembly complex and reported foiling an attempt by some hoodlums to set fire to it.
It was gathered that after several meetings and the intervention of party leaders, the House reconvened on Monday and removed Mr Aribisogan.
Aside from his impeachment, he was also suspended indefinitely alongside six members loyal to him.
In his place, the 17 lawmakers elected Mrs Adelugba as the new Speaker and of course, the first female speaker in the state.
Those suspended are Tajudeen Akingbolu, Goke Olajide, Yemisi Ayokunle, Adeyemi Ajibade, Kemi Balogun, andTope Ogunleye.
The House also elected a new Leader of Business in the person of Johnson Bode-Adeoye, as well as a new Chairman for Committee on Appropriation, Lateef Akanle.
Aribisogan had earlier accused former Governor, Kayode Fayemi, of orchestrating the opposition to his election.

He told newsmen that Mr Fayemi was working with members of the state legislature to oust 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,” Mr Aribisogan said on Sunday Politics on Channels.

“I didn’t have any quarrel with him. 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.

“As I’m speaking with you, seven of our members are locked up in Fem Guest House in Ado Ekiti, planning on how to impeach me tomorrow in cahoots with some of his former aides like the former commissioner for justice.”

Meanwhile, the Chief Press Secretary to the state governor, Yinka Oyebode, said the issue was a party matter and that it would be wrong for Mr Aribisogan to single out a person for blame.