- Last Updated on 02 June 2015
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Acting Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Uche Secondus, on Monday appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari, to help resolve the political impasse between the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, and members of the state House of Assembly on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Secondus said Buhari must resolve the political crisis between the 19 aggrieved members of the House and the governor for the sake of democracy.
Secondus, who spoke at a retreat organised by the PDP for elected lawmakers on its platform in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, alleged that the APC lawmakers were currently camped at a location in Osun in preparation to be moved to Ekiti.
“We call on President Buhari to intervene. As a party, we will not sit down and watch democracy being derailed,” Secondus said.
“We have been working on deepening democracy for the past 16 years. We must continue to deepen it and I call on you to continue to deepen democracy.”
However, his allegation is coming days after the governor held a meeting behind closed-doors with the embittered lawmakers and later told journalists the meeting was a success as also confirmed by the factional Speaker of the House, Adewale Omirin.
It is also coming about 24 hours after the governor confirmed he had paid the lawmakers their salaries and other entitlements while slamming the lawmakers for allegedly claiming they have not been paid.
According to a statement by the State Commissioner for Finance, Chief Toyin Ojo, the lawmakers duly acknowledged receipt of cheques for their payments last week Wednesday through his office.
The statement was in reaction to a statement issued by one Wole Olujobi, who claimed to be the lawmakers’ spokesperson, that Governor Ayodele Fayose placed embargo on the lawmakers bank accounts and did not pay them their entitlements.
Ojo said: “We would have remained silent in deference to the agreement reached at the last Monday meeting in Akure that all parties should maintain silence on the outcome of the meeting, especially because the lawmakers said they do not want their leaders to know the outcome of the meeting.”
“However, since the lawmakers have chosen not to abide by this agreement by first issuing a press statement to deny and reveal what was discussed in the meeting, and now going to the press to say that they have not received any payment, the government does not have any other option than to tell the public the truth and set the records straight.
“The government is by this press statement putting the records straight since the money paid to the lawmakers belong to Ekiti people.
“The payment was made in cheques because the lawmakers pleaded that their accounts should not be credited directly so as to avoid the banks from making deductions for loans taken from the banks.
“Saying that they have not been paid is quite unfortunate and unbecoming of honourable members of the State House of Assembly and this is sad.
“We will want to keep our fingers crossed and we wish to caution the lawmakers to adhere strictly to the spirit of the agreements.
“Governor Fayose’s good gesture, aimed at ensuring peace in the State should not be abused.
