Assembly re~affirms judge’s request for Aregbesola’s impeachment

Firstclass newsline learnt that the Speaker of the Osun State House of
Assembly, Mr. Najeem Salaam, said on Wednesday that the assembly had
received a petition from Justice Folahanmi Oloyede, calling for the
impeachment of Governor Rauf Aregbesola because of alleged financial
recklessness.
Oloyede is a serving judge in the Osun State judiciary.
The judge's petition read in part, "Consequently, the admitted
inability of Mr. Governor and his deputy to pay pensions, salaries and
allowances for periods ranging from eight to 11 months now as a
consequence of their own decision to accumulate debts beyond the
capacity of the state's internally generated revenue, whilst the very
'actors', Mr. Governor and his deputy, continue to enjoy their
security allowances in hundreds of millions, is a violation of their
oaths of office.
"Their action in this respect is as illegal as it is immoral and
unconscionable. It is an evidence of their inability to discharge the
functions of their office. There is therefore no legal or moral basis
for their continued stay in office.
"To this end and for this reason, I am sure other well-meaning and
concerned members of the Osun community are hereby calling on
honourable members of the state House of Assembly to pick up the
gauntlet and redeem themselves, by giving effect to the provisions of
Sections 128 and 129 of the Constitution, which empower them to
investigate and bring to justice, all those who have corruptly
enriched themselves at the expense of Osun and her people.''
Salam, who confirmed in a source in an interview on Wednesday that the
assembly had received the petition, said the House would write a
letter of acknowledgement to the petitioner and write the governor to
defend himself against the allegations contained in the letter.
The Speaker said, "Yes, we received the petition and we acknowledged
it. But there is nothing we can do now because of the strike. Workers'
strike is affecting our sittings.
"We will send a copy of the petition to the governor for his defence.
We will deliberate on it by the time the strike is over."
The Clerk of the House of Assembly also confirmed the receipt of the
petition in a separate interview with our correspondent.
Oyeniran said, "It is true we received a petition and we are working on it."
The Minority Leader, Mr. Oladejo Makinde, who is a member of the
Peoples Democratic Party, said he was not aware of the petition but
said the House would deliberate on it by the time the lawmakers
started sitting.
Efforts to get the governor's reaction to this allegation were
unsuccessful as calls and text messages sent to his media aide, Mr.
Semiu Okanlawon, were not responded to.
Firstclassnewsline.net