The leadership crisis rocking the Ondo State House of Assembly deepened on Monday as 21 lawmakers renewed their call for the impeachment of Speaker Olamide Oladiji over allegations of financial misconduct.
The lawmakers also accused Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of frustrating efforts to remove the Speaker, alleging that he had been intervening to halt the impeachment process despite the backing of the majority of members.
Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Olatunji Fabiyi, disclosed this during a telephone interview, claiming that 21 of the 26 lawmakers had already signed the impeachment notice against the Speaker.
Fabiyi alleged that Oladiji was being investigated over the alleged diversion of N44 million belonging to the Ondo State Oil
Producing Areas Development Commission, adding that the Speaker had been given a seven-day ultimatum to resign or face impeachment.
He further claimed that the governor had been reaching out to lawmakers to persuade them to abandon the move, insisting that the Assembly's leadership was strictly an internal affair of the legislature.
"We have made it clear to the governor that this is not about him. The majority of members no longer have confidence in the Speaker, and we believe he should step aside in the interest of the House," Fabiyi said.
He added, "If the Speaker refuses to resign, we will proceed with the impeachment. The decision has already been taken by the majority of lawmakers, and there is no going back."
Fabiyi also disclosed that the lawmakers had resolved to suspend plenary indefinitely until there was a change in the leadership of the Assembly.
According to him, members accused the Speaker of failing to carry them along in the disbursement of N44 million reportedly released for the reordering of the 2026 OSOPADEC budget, a development that fueled the current crisis.
He maintained that the Assembly would reconvene only after the leadership issue had been resolved, stressing that the lawmakers remained committed to ensuring what they described as transparency and accountability in the House.
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