Tinubu to Intervene in Ondo Political Crisis as Lawmakers Plan to Declare Akeredolu Unfit To Govern

The political tension in Ondo State is rising as the state lawmakers are considering declaring the deputy governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, as the acting governor, due to the prolonged absence of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu.

The governor has been away from the state for over three months, attending to his health in Germany and Ibadan.

Newsflash Nigeria reports that the lawmakers are under pressure from different quarters to take action on the governor’s health and fitness to govern the state.

The governor had transferred power to his deputy in May, before he left for Germany for medical treatment. However, since his return to Nigeria in September, he has not resumed office in Ondo State, but has been staying in his residence in Ibadan, Oyo State capital.

The governor’s aides have claimed that he resumed office on September 8, a day after returning from Germany, and that he has been working from home. However, there are indications that the state is suffering from a lack of effective governance and leadership.

The lawmakers have decided to hold a plenary session to discuss the governor’s health and the political situation in the state.

A source close to the assembly told Daily Trust that the lawmakers are divided over the issue of declaring Aiyedatiwa as the acting governor. He said that some of the lawmakers are opposed to the idea, despite the intervention of the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the lawmakers would meet at the plenary and one of the agenda of the sitting is to declare Aiyedatiwa as the acting governor, since Akeredolu is not fit yet due to his health challenge. He said that the decision by the lawmakers was taken after the directive of the APC leaders in Abuja.

The Chairman of House Committee on Information, Olatunji Oshati, confirmed that the lawmakers would meet to discuss the political crisis in the state.

He said that the assembly would make its resolution public at the appropriate time. He said that the assembly would only sit and discuss the political situation in the state as already directed by the national leaders of the party.

“The assembly will only sit and discuss the political situation in the state as already directed by the national leaders of the party.”

Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu is set to meet with the key stakeholders in Ondo State, in a bid to resolve the feud between Akeredolu and Aiyedatiwa. The meeting, which is scheduled to hold in Abuja, is being convened by Tinubu, following the reports of the political crisis in the state.

A source in Akure, the state capital, told newsmen that the meeting would involve the major actors in Ondo APC and the members of the state assembly. He said that the meeting was at the instance of the presidency, which is concerned by the media reports and the letters written to its office about the development in the state.

He said that Tinubu would try to mediate and reconcile the parties involved in the crisis. He said that the president was aware of the situation in the state and wanted to restore peace and harmony.

The spokesman for the APC in Ondo, Alex Kalejaye, also confirmed that the meeting would take place. He said that the intervention of the presidency would help to end the political impasse in the state. He said that the party was committed to the welfare and development of the state.

“I was supposed to meet with the state chairman of the party today but I have been told that he rushed out of the house. I’m sure it’s on this development.

“Don’t forget that I issued a statement yesterday on the political situation in the state and assuring the people that the faceoff is currently being addressed by the leadership of the party in the state and at the national level.

 “So, that statement was a saving grace for us as the presidency has decided to intervene in the matter. We quite sure that if Mr Tinubu had been around all this while, it wouldn’t take this long.”

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