Ekiti: Two Council Chairmen Face Impeachment On Monday Over APC Primaries Crisis

The political crisis in Ekiti State over the All Progressives Congress (APC) primaries for the local government elections has taken a new turn, as two local government chairmen are set to be impeached on Monday for allegedly defying the government’s directives.

The affected chairmen are Oluwafemi Ayodele of Ikere Local Government and Toyin Afolabi of Ikere West Local Council Development Area (LCDA).

According to Newsflash Nigeria, the impeachment plot is linked to their refusal to support the government-backed candidates for the local government elections scheduled for December 2023.

The news outlet had earlier reported that Governor Abiodun Oyebanji and his deputy, who is from Ikere town, had been accused of manipulating the outcome of the APC primaries, which were held on October 7, 2023.

A document purportedly signed by the governor’s adviser and the state party chairman had revealed a list of predetermined winners of the primaries, which had not been held at the time. The document was dated September 29, 2023, and contained the names of the preferred candidates and their deputies for the 16 local government areas in the state.

The document was leaked to the public by a coalition of civil society groups in Ekiti State, who condemned the alleged imposition of candidates and called for a free and fair process.

Sources told Newsflash Nigeria that after the primaries, the state government summoned the outgoing 11 councillors in Ikere Ekiti to impeach the two chairmen on Monday. The sources said that if they failed to do so, the government would call on the state assembly to suspend them.

The two chairmen reportedly got into trouble after rejecting the candidates handpicked by the deputy governor from their zones. Afolabi, who was seeking a second term, was replaced by Rufus Olorunfemi, while Ayodele, who had served for four years was against the government candidate,  Olu Adamolekun.

The sources also said that both chairmen were detained in the RSS office in Ado for about eight hours during the primaries to prevent them from participating in the exercise.

The development has caused tension in Ikere town, as the leadership of the community has written a letter to Governor Oyebanji to intervene in the matter. The letter appealed to the governor to respect the wishes of the people and allow them to choose their representatives.

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