The Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Olamide Oladiji, has dismissed the impeachment move initiated by 12 lawmakers of the House, insisting that the allegations against him are unfounded and politically motivated.
The 26-member Assembly, made up entirely of the ruling All Progressives Congress, has been split for weeks, with 14 lawmakers said to be working with the Speaker to run the affairs of the House while 12 others have stayed away amid the internal crisis.
Reports circulated on social media on Saturday that the aggrieved lawmakers had passed a vote of no confidence in the Speaker and had begun collecting signatures to remove him over alleged gross misconduct.
One of the lawmakers leading the revolt, Mr Olajide Oguntolu, representing Akure South Constituency 1, reiterated on Crest FM, Akure, that the Speaker must vacate office.
He accused Oladiji of misappropriation of funds and withholding financial records from members.
“There is gross misappropriation of funds in that Assembly,” Oguntolu alleged. “This Speaker thinks he is running a kindergarten Assembly. All we are asking for is transparency and accountability. We have all signed the impeachment notice.”
However, Speaker Oladiji faulted the impeachment attempt, insisting the dissenting lawmakers were acting out of personal grievances and were attempting to hold the House hostage over demands they made to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa.
“We have a Standing Order guiding our activities,” he said. “These honourable members who claim to have passed a vote of no confidence have not been coming to the House for legislative duties. Many of them are outside the country. They said they have certain demands from His Excellency, but we cannot tie legislative work—particularly the supplementary budget—to personal requests.”
On the allegation of misappropriation, the Speaker maintained that he neither handles nor accesses Assembly funds directly.
“We have an accounting officer in the House. I only give approvals; I do not handle money. Their accusations are tied to their demands, not to any misconduct,” he said.
Oguntolu, however, insisted the crisis had nothing to do with the governor, maintaining that the move to remove the Speaker was solely about integrity.
“The impeachment move has absolutely nothing to do with the governor,” he said. “Those standing by the Speaker are the ones undermining the progress of the state.”
With both camps refusing to shift ground, the Assembly remains deeply divided as the face-off intensifies.
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