Members of the Ondo State House of Assembly have removed Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Iroju Ogundeji.
Ogundeji was impeached during Tuesday plenary for alleged gross misconduct and abuse of office and has been replaced by Mr Samuel Aderoboye from Odigbo Constituency 2.
The impeachment is sequel to an attempt by some lawmakers to impeach the deputy governor of the state, Mr Agboola Ajayi.
Ogundeji is reported to be one of the nine lawmakers who refused sign the impeachment notice against the embattled deputy governor.
The impeached Deputy Speaker was earlier suspended indefinitely by the House, citing unruly behaviour but he was reinstated by a Federal High Court in Akure, the state capital.
Additional information by Mayowa Olumuyiwa
Iroju representing Odigbo constituency 2 was impeached at the house plenary on Tuesday following the house resolutions led by the speaker, Rt. Hon. Bamidele Oloyelogun.
KaftanPost obtained a brief from the assembly’s spokesperson that Iroju was impeached on the ground of gross misconduct which has brought disrepute to the hallowed chamber.
According to him, twenty lawmakers signed for the impeachment, forming the needed quorum.
Meanwhile, following the reconstitution of the House leadership structure, the suspended member representing Ondo West constituency 1, Hon. Tomide Akinribido, has also been removed as the house minority leader and replaced by Hon. Festus Akingbaso from PDP while Hon. Ogunmolasuyi from Owo Constituency is the new majority leader.
Similarly, Hon. Taofeek Oladele is now the new Chief whip in replacement of Adeyemi Olayemi.
According to some political observers in the state, the recent power tussle in the assembly is not unconnected with the role played by some of the house lawmakers who were said to be staunch supporters of the deputy governor, Agboola Ajayi.
Sources revealed that these few lawmakers headed by the fired Deputy Speaker, Hon. Itoju Ogundeji, dissociated themselves from the impeachment move against Ajayi, thereby leading to their unlawful suspension from the assembly.
After several weeks of this development, the affected lawmakers filed a suit against the house leadership, challenging what they described as “unconstitutional suspension”.
However, the latest in the stretch of the developments was a ruling granted in favor of the suspended lawmakers as led by the Deputy speaker, Hon. Iroju Ogundeji.
Some political analysts who confided in KaftanPost correspondent opined that the refusal of the house leadership to obey this latest Court ruling, which they described as an affront on the law, has not only degenerated into anarchy but also occasioned what they described as abuse of power leading to the impeachment of the embattled Deputy Speaker.
Meanwhile, the state Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN is expected present to the State House of Assembly 2021 budget on Friday.
