Ekiti State House of Assembly has reinstated eight Local Government Chairmen and their Councillors elected on the platform of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP).
The unanimous resolution was reached at Thursday’s Assembly plenary where it was resolved that the Chairmen and Councilors should be reinstated.
This decision was followed by a petition filed by the ALGON Chairman, Mr. Dapo Olagunju on behalf of the chairmen appealing to the Assembly for their reinstatement.
The Assembly had on December, 18, 2018 suspended indefinitely all the 16 LGAs Chairmen and 177 Councillors to pave way for forensic audit of the councils’ account over alleged financial impropriety.
They were indicted by the report of the Assembly Public Account Committee saddled with the responsibility of probing finances of the Councils.
It was gathered their reinstatement followed the adoption of the reports of the House Committee of Public Petitions submitted by it Chairman, Mr Adegoke Olajide.
The eight reinstated LGAs Chairmen and Councillors were: Ijero, Moba, Gbonyin, Ado and Irepodun/Ifelodun, Ikole, Ekiti South West and Ekiti West.
Other eight embattled chairmen and their councillors in Oye, Ise/Orun,Ekiti East, Ikere and Efon, Ido/Osi, Emure and Ilejemeje Local Government remain suspended for further forensic investigation.
Presenting the report of his committee, the Chairman of the House Committee on Public Petitions, Mr Adegoke Olajide said the Chairman of the Ekiti ALGON, Mr Dapo Olagunju on behalf of others wrote a petition appealing for reinstatement.
“The appellant on behalf of the 16 indicted LGAs Chairmen appealed to the Assembly to passionately look into their cases with a view to reinstating them back in office.
” The decision of the Public Petitions Committee to consider the appeal of Mr Dapo Olajide on behalf of all the 16 indicted LGA Chairmen is premised on the imperative of ensuring stability of the third tiers of government within the state.
“It is the opinion of the committee that the LGA officials who obtained clearance from the supervising Ministry before embarking on questionable projects can be reinstated,” Olajide said.
Speaker Funmiyi Afuye commended the committee for a work well done, describing it as a great job.
Other business at the Thursday’s plenary was the first reading of the Ekiti State Fiscal Responsibility Bill, 2019.
The Assembly thereafter adjourned plenary sitting to July 15.
Tag: Council Chairmen
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Ekiti Assembly reinstates eight suspended PDP council chairmen
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$1b ECA: Ekiti Council Chairmen ask court to void approval for fund’s withdrawal
Sixteen Local Government Chairmen in Ekiti State have asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to void the approval given for the Federal Government to withdraw $1billion from the Excess Crude Account of the Federation for the prosecution of its fight against Boko Haram.
Their request is contained in a suit they filed, listing the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), the 36 state Governors and the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission as defendants.
The Chairmen, in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1264/17, want the court to restrain the Federal Government, the 36 state Governors and their agents from giving effect to the appropriation and/ or approval of appropriation of $1b or any other sum, from the Excess Crude Account of the Federation, as contained in the decision made on December 15, 2017 unless and by means of statutory allocation by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).
They also want the court to declare that the approval of $1b by the 36 state Governors to purportedly execute the constitutional duty of the Federal government, which has been sufficiently funded from the Federation Account, without the their consent is ultra vires, unlawful, null and void.
They equally want an order of court declaring that in the discharge of its constitutional duty to safeguard the security and territorial integrity of Nigeria, the Federal Government of Nigeria, being the 1st defendant’s principal (AGF), must be funded in accordance with its Appropriation Act and by means of due accruals from the Federation account only.
The plaintiffs want the court to declare that the 1st -37 defendants’ appropriation and /or approval of appropriation of the sum of $1 from the Excess Crude Account of the federation made at the National Economic Council meeting of December 12, 2017 without regard to the consent of the 38th defendant (the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission), the plaintiffs; and the due appropriation of the various states’ Houses of Assembly, is unconstitutional, unlawful and of no effect whatsoever.
They equally want a declaration that they are entitled to full share of all revenue accrued and accruable to the Federation Account and the Federation Excess Crude Account or any other Account whatsoever operated by and for the Federation of Nigeria, including the sum of $1,000,000,000 (which was purportedly approved for the expenditure of the Federal Government by the 1st-37th defendants at the 83rd, National Economic Council meeting of December 15, 2017, in accordance with section 162 of the 1999 constitution and the provisions of Allocation of Revenue (Federation Account) Act.
The plaintiffs raised some questions for the court’s determination. They include:
*Whether by the provisions of sections 153 (1) (h), 162 and paragraph 18, part 1 of the third schedule to the 1999 constitution, the 1st -37th defendants can lawfully appropriate and or approve the appropriation of funds in the excess crude account of the Federation of Nigeria, without affecting, reducing or obliterating the plaintiffs’ lawful share of proceeds from the federation accounts.
*Whether the 2nd defendant can lawfully appropriate and /or approve the appropriation of funds in the excess crude account of the Federation of Nigeria, without the consent and /or consultation of the plaintiffs.
*Whether in the discharge of the federal government’s constitutional duty of safeguarding the security and territorial integrity of Nigeria, (as mandated by section 217 of the 1999 constitution, the Federal government can lawfully resort to funding other than by means of its Appropriation Act.?
The plaintiffs are: Deji Ogunsakin (Ado LGA); Bola Alonge (Ikere LGA); Lanrewaju Omolase (Ekiti South West LGA); Dapo Olagunju (Irepodun/Ifelodun LGA); Samuel Adeniyi (Ekiti East LGA); Olumide Falade (Ise/Orun LGA); Sade Akinrinmola (Gbonyin LGA); Tayo Ogundare (Oye LGA); Chief Ayodeji Arogbodo (Ido/Osi LGA) and Taiwo Oguntuase (Emure LGA).
Others are Kolawole Omotunde (Ekiti West LGA); Bolaji Jeje (Efon LGA); Adesola Adeyanju (Ikole LGA); Ganiyu Bakare (Ilejemele LGA); Adeniyi Adebayo (Moba LGA) and Abiodun Dada (Ijero LGA).