News
Ondo Assembly Impeachment Crisis Deepens as Spokesperson Insists Speaker Must Go
The impeachment crisis rocking the Ondo State House of Assembly has deepened, with the Assembly’s spokesperson, Olatunji Ifabiyi, insisting that the process to remove Speaker Olamide Oladiji remains ongoing.
Ifabiyi, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in a telephone interview on Thursday, dismissed reports that lawmakers had abandoned moves to impeach the Speaker.
He described such reports as misinformation, maintaining that members of the Assembly remained committed to removing Oladiji from office despite ongoing reconciliation efforts involving Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and other political stakeholders.
“We have been hearing reports that we have stopped the process; that is not correct. It is misinformation. We are still on it. He cannot continue as our Speaker,” Ifabiyi said.
According to him, the intervention by Governor Aiyedatiwa has not halted the lawmakers’ plans, stressing that there was no going back on the impeachment move.
“Although Gov. Lucky Aiyedatiwa has been speaking with some of us, that does not stop the impeachment process. There is no going back,” the Assembly spokesperson said.
The development has heightened uncertainty within the state legislature as political leaders continue efforts to resolve the disagreement between members of the Assembly and the Speaker.
However, Oladiji has rejected claims that an impeachment process is underway, saying the issues responsible for the disagreement had already been resolved following interventions by the governor and leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“There is nothing like an impeachment process because the issues have been resolved. There is no impeachment,” the Speaker said in a statement.
Oladiji said the governor and other party leaders had intervened in the matter and that lawmakers were expected to hold their parliamentary meeting.
“Mr Governor and other leaders of the party have intervened, and today we are expected to hold our parliamentary meeting,” he said.
The Speaker also addressed an earlier incident involving three youth leaders who were seen within the Assembly complex on Thursday.
According to Oladiji, the youths had visited the Assembly to collect recruitment forms and were questioned by some lawmakers about their presence.
He explained that he subsequently came out of his office to inform the lawmakers that the individuals were his guests and had previously visited the Assembly premises.
“I came out of my office and explained to the members that they were my guests and had visited the Assembly on previous occasions,” he said.
Oladiji maintained that the visitors did not harass anyone and that the disagreement was eventually resolved after some lawmakers insisted that they leave the premises.
“We were able to resolve the matter, and there was nothing like an impeachment notice or impeachment process,” he added.
The conflicting positions from the Assembly spokesperson and the Speaker leave the status of the alleged impeachment move unclear, even as efforts continue to reconcile the lawmakers and prevent the political dispute from escalating.
Tochi Wigwe, the eldest surviving daughter of late former Access Bank Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Herbert Wigwe, has held her traditional wedding ceremony with her partner, Wilson Aikhomu, in Ikoyi, Lagos.
The private ceremony, attended by family members and close friends, featured traditional marriage rites, including the payment of the bride price, signing of family documents and the formal handing over of the bride to her husband’s family.
Videos and photographs from the ceremony surfaced on social media on Thursday, attracting congratulatory messages and goodwill wishes from friends, associates and well-wishers.
Tochi, who studied at New York University and obtained a master’s degree from Imperial College London, previously worked as an analyst at Access Bank. She also gained professional experience through an internship at Coronation Merchant Bank.
She currently serves as a director at the HOW Foundation, an organisation established in memory of her late father.
Her husband, Wilson Aikhomu, is a Lagos-based investment professional and the Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer of Zoya Admiralty.
The crash also claimed the lives of former Nigerian Exchange Group Chairman, Abimbola Ogunbanjo, and two crew members.
Wigwe, who was 57 at the time of his death, was widely recognised as one of Nigeria’s prominent banking executives.
He served as Group Chief Executive Officer of Access Holdings and played a significant role in the growth and expansion of Access Bank into one of Nigeria’s leading financial institutions.
His death attracted widespread tributes from Nigeria’s banking, business and political communities.
The Anambra State Government has dismissed allegations that roads constructed under Governor Chukwuma Soludo are substandard, describing criticisms circulating on social media as politically motivated.
The state Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Okey Ezeobi, said the administration’s road construction projects remained largely intact, with more than 95 per cent of completed roads reportedly in good condition.
Ezeobi stated this on Wednesday during a press briefing in Awka, where he addressed public concerns over the quality and condition of roads constructed across the state under the Soludo administration.He added that some Federal Government road projects had equally experienced similar challenges due to the impact of the rainfall.
The commissioner said the state government would remove damaged asphalt from affected sections and introduce cement-based stabilisation to address underground water problems and prevent further deterioration.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to improving road infrastructure, while also noting that the South-East had benefited from Federal Government interventions in road construction and infrastructure investment.
President Bola Tinubu has returned to Abuja after completing a week-long lesser pilgrimage, known as Umrah, in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
The President arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at 8:53pm on Wednesday aboard the presidential Airbus A330-200, according to a brief update by the State House media office.
He was received at the airport by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila; the Minister of Education; the Minister of State for Defence; the Inspector-General of Police; and other senior government officials.
Tinubu had departed King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah earlier on Wednesday at 5:13pm Saudi time aboard the presidential aircraft.
The presidential visit, which commenced on Thursday last week, was primarily for the performance of Umrah at the Grand Mosque, Masjid al-Haram.His comment came days after he formally flagged off his re-election campaign in Kaduna on October 24, ahead of the January 16, 2027 general elections.
Members of the presidential entourage included the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and the governors of Sokoto, Jigawa, Kaduna, Borno and Yobe States, among other government officials.
The President’s return marks the end of his week-long religious visit to Saudi Arabia as political activities ahead of the 2027 general elections continue to gather momentum.
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