Loyalists of Ondo state governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa are plotting a leadership change in the state’s House of Assembly, QUEST TIMES reports exclusively.
Credible sources informed our correspondent that some members of the house have being holding secret meetings with the new governor to change the leadership of the House and replace the Speaker, Olamide Oladiji who is representing Ondo East Constituency, and the deputy speaker, Abayomi Akinruntan from Ilaje Constituency 1.
It is believed that the two men were the arrowheads of the plot to impeach Aiyedatiwa when he was deputy governor to late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu.
Akeredolu died last week Wednesday at the age of 67 in Germany after a long battle with prostate cancer.
The unfortunate development, however paved the way for Aiyedatiwa who has been serving as the acting governor to be sworn-in as the substantive governor.
According to our source, the lawmakers loyal to Aiyedatiwa are already plotting with the governor on the need to effect the changes and other implications.
“There are serious plans for leadership change in the House now that power has changed hands. Since Aiyedatiwa was sworn-in last week, his loyalists have been saying that there is no way he can work with the current Speaker and other principal officers who almost impeached him for committing no crime”.
” They claimed that aside making desperate moves to remove Aiyedatiwa as deputy governor, they even refused to support him when the party leaders move that he should be sworn-in as acting governor”.
” If not for the intervention of President Bola Tinubu and other party stakeholders, Aiyedatiwa would have been impeached and one of the lawmakers, may be Akinruntan himself will be the governor now”.
“They have shown their hands as enemies of the new governor and as such, it will be difficult for them to work together”.
When asked if Oladiji will resign as some Akeredolu’s aides have done last week, one of his aides who spoke on condition of anonymity said the issue of resignation does not arise.
” The Speaker is not an aide of the former governor. He is elected by his colleagues and the Assembly is an independent body, not an appendage of the Executive arm” he said.
There are also those advising the Governor not to do anything that can further weaken the party in Ondo State. But it seems the move to replace the Assembly leaders is gathering more momentum.