The Ekiti State government on Sunday, May 31, 2015 brought the fact that the 19 All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers, whose tenures are due to end on Thursday, June 4, 2015. have been paid their entitlements to public notice.
The APC lawmakers however are still hell bent on continuing with the clash between them and the state Governor, Ayo Fayose, that has required the intervention of some high profile individuals in the state.
According to reports, fresh tension arose i the state on Monday, June 1, 2015 when news broke that the APC lawmakers were planning to come back to continue proceedings to impeach Governor Fayose. The lawmakers were alleged to have gathered in an hotel in a neighbouring state with plans to storm Ekiti State and commence the impeachment plan.
Policemen were quickly mobilized to the Ekiti State House of Assembly to avoid things spiralling out of control and to calm the tensions arising. They blocked off roads leading to the Assembly complex while members of the PDP in the state alongside commercial bike riders blocked the secretariat and NTA roads leading to the Assembly.
In warning the lawmakers that they would be responsible for contempt of court if the lawmakers continued any impeachment proceeding against him seeing as the Federal High Court in the state presided over by Justice E. S. Chukwu had ordered that the April 23, 2015 status quo be maintained until the motion of notice is determined, Governor Fayose also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to call his fellow APC people to order.
Governor Fayose said; “They have been dropping the name of President Muhammadu Buhari as giving them the backing to impeach me. How can an Assembly, whose tenure will wind up on Thursday be planning this. I wonder why the issue of the past should be allowed to come to play now.
“As of the date the court gave the order, I mean April 23, Adewale Omirin was not the speaker. It will be wrong for the court order not to be respected. This is illegality and I want to raise this for the public to know.
“Omirin has gone to Court to challenge his impeachment and later withdrew such, which means he accepted he had been impeached and a cost of N100,000 was awarded against him.
“So, he is not the Speaker. I am calling on well-meaning Nigerians, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mohammed Mahmoud and President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in this matter.
“How can somebody be living in another State and be planning to invade his own state; this is something else and I view this as a major crime anyone can commit against his people.”
On the payment of the salaries and entitlements, he said; “They came to collect the cheques in Ado Ekiti in company with the Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Toyin Ojo.
“The issue would have been discussed publicly during the peace parley, but they insisted that it should not be discussed openly because they didn’t want the leaders of their party to know.”
