*I can’t be intimidated, says Senator
2018 governorship ambition of some chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ekiti State has landed two members of the state House of Assembly in trouble as some lawmakers loyal to Governor Ayo Fayose have started investigating them for allegedly hobnobbing with the Senator representing Ekiti South Senatorial District, Mrs. Biodun Olujimi.
The two lawmakers, Mr. Michael Adedeji, representing Ekiti Southwest constituency II, and Mr. Adeojo Fajana, representing Ekiti East constituency 1, were investigated by a disciplinary committee and found to be allegedly loyal to Olujimi, who is believed to be having a cold
war with Fayose over the 2018 governorship poll.
The House also found the lawmakers guilty of alleged conversion of some
public utilities like roads and boreholes sunk through the instrumentality of the federal lawmaker to personal use, in an attempt to compromise the legislators , which it said constituted a gross misconduct.
The Assembly at a press conference in Ado Ekiti on Thursday, described as “sacrilege”, Senator Olujimi’s alleged claim on the social media that 11 members of the assembly were loyal to her, saying the House was an institution that was too big and independent to be in her pocket .
Briefing the newsmen on the matter, the Chairman, House Committee on
Information, Hon Samuel Omotoso, said “erring Lawmaker” Adedeji had been pardoned by the assembly, having written an apology letter to the Speaker, Hon Kola Oluwawole, and for showing remorse for his action.
It has been rumoured that Governor Fayose had directed the Senator
and a former Minister of State for Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, to drop their ambitions for his preferred candidate.
Omotoso revealed that the other “erring lawmaker”, Fajana, was yet to appear before the panel and promised that his matter would be treated with utmost fairness anytime he appeared.
Claiming that the action taken against the lawmakers were mere were corrective measures to protect the Assembly, Omotoso said there was nothing personal over the assembly’s action.
“After investigation, it was discovered that truly, these honourable
members have unholy alliances with Senator Olujimi .The alliance is
not even the issue, but what it has brought to the people and the
Assembly as an institution.
“We found out that the alliances with the Senator had made these
lawmakers to consistently exhibit wrong signs and acted disrespectfully to the office of the speaker, thus bringing his (Speaker’s) office and integrity of the house to disrepute.
“We have seen in the social media how Senator Olujimi claimed that he was in control of this house; this is not so. The PDP organogram in Ekiti is very clear. Governor Fayose is our leader; no other leader, anywhere”, he said.
Omotoso added that the Assembly, as a product of the law, had standing orders with which it regulated itself, and maintained discipline among the lawmakers, saying the house would not overlook any member’s misconduct capable of plunging the Assembly into crisis.
“We are not bothered about Senator Olujimi’s because these actions are not personal but directed at maintaining decent and honourable conducts among our members”, he said.
But in her reaction, Senator Olujimi said, “They (lawmakers) are just hiding behind one finger. They are playing cheap and small boys’ politics, using worn-out tricks. Let them try new tricks. It is because they know that I have the ambition to be Governor of Ekiti State that they are doing this.
“The road in question is for the Constituency and the member of the House being attacked is not even close to me. It was the monarch of the town that picked the site. The project they are talking about now had been completed six months ago.
“So why are they coming out with the allegation now? Can you imagine that the so-called letter of apology purportedly written by the lawmaker was in the Ekiti State House
of Assembly letter-head paper? They are already lying behind someone.
“They are only using the members (of the House) to get at me. They should be courageous enough to face me and not use the members who are not even close to me.
On the allegation of sponsoring violence, she said, “Where are my violent acts? They have asked people to lay ambush for me if I come to Ekiti.”