There is a growing controversy in Ondo State regarding Governor Rotimi Akeredolu’s extended stay in Ibadan, which is about 184 kilometers away from Akure, the capital of his state. This comes two weeks after he returned from a three-month medical leave in Germany.
Despite officially resuming his duties, the governor has not visited his state. While it is not a crime for a governor to carry out his responsibilities from outside his state, the opposition is concerned that Akeredolu’s continued residence in Ibadan may suggest that he is not yet prepared to fully assume his duties and responsibilities to the people of Ondo State.
Between June and September, while the governor of the state was on medical leave in Germany, his deputy Lucky Aiyedatiwa served as acting governor. The governor officially transferred power to him through a notice to the state House of Assembly.
When the news of the governor’s recovery and return to Nigeria on September 8th was announced, there was a sense of relief in the state and joy among his supporters. However, the illness and the deputy governor’s temporary leadership had caused a division in the state executive council. The associates of the governor suspected Aiyedatiwa of being disloyal to the governor.
Since Akeredolu returned to the country, he has been conducting government activities from his personal residence in Ibadan, including meetings with members of his cabinet, national and state legislators, his associates in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), traditional rulers and other interested parties.
Explaining why he is in Ibadan instead of returning to Akure, his state capital, Akeredolu spokesperson Richard Olatunde said in a statement: “So, since we had to land here in Ibadan first, I said I had have to meet with the House of Representatives. of the assembly members here. We are here and we are back. I am back and, by the grace of God, I will be alive to complete my term in office. I want to tell you that I am back and will resume work immediately. This is my resumption letter.”
The governor’s comments in the statement were largely understood as a mockery of his deputy, who was the primary beneficiary of the governor’s incapacitation. Furthermore, Mr Aiyedatiwa is interested in running in next year’s gubernatorial election.
Although Akeredolu is not eligible to contest those elections as he is in his second and final term, he is expected to play a pivotal role in the nomination of the ruling APC’s candidate.
In the two weeks since the governor resumed his duties, his attitude toward his deputy has been testy at best. His aides and associates publicly attacked Mr. Aiyedatiwa and voiced rumors that the deputy governor and his associates hoped the governor would not recover from his illness before returning to his seat.
One of Mr Akeredolu’s first actions upon his resumption was to fire his deputy’s media assistants and transfer the functions of his media team to the state Ministry of Information and Guidance. In what seemed like deja vu, the state House of Assembly on Wednesday formally began the process for the impeachment of the lieutenant governor. Lawmakers had taken the same step less than four years ago against Akeredolu’s first MP, Agboola Ajayi, who had also been accused of disloyalty. The current development came after days of speculation that Aiyedatiwa was under pressure to resign. But the lieutenant governor had promised not to do so, publicly issuing a disclaimer over an alleged resignation letter from him.
While the drama between the governor and his deputy has raised the political temperature in the state, Akeredolu’s failure to physically return to his state capital is further dividing public opinion in the state.
Controversial decisions
Another important action Akeredolu took upon his return from overseas medical leave was to pass a bill establishing local council development areas (LCDAs) in the state. The state House of Assembly passed the bill shortly before her return.
However, some communities in the state had protested the delimitation of the 33 LCDAs, which were created from the existing 18 local government areas in the state. For example, the Ijaw minority ethnic group in Ese-Odo Local Government Area issued a 21-day ultimatum to the state government to reverse the surrender of their lands to Irele and Ilaje Local Government Areas in the new LCDAs.
A community in Akure South LGA, Isikan, also protested that the area was not given an LCDA. The various groups had expressed their discontent at the public hearing on the LCDA bill held in the state House of Assembly in August. The leaders of the aggrieved communities had seen the governor’s return as an opportunity to reconsider his demands, but the governor immediately enacted the new LCDA from Ibadan.
Ondo residents speak
A road transport operator, Adeniran Opeyemi, who lives near the Government House in Akure, said the absence of the governor created room for crisis in his government and laxity of public servants.
“I’m not saying the governor should come back immediately, because anyone can get sick. But his subordinates are not doing his job. “Even in our parks, we joke that since the governor is not present, we should not pay the fines (municipal commercial vehicle taxes),”
Furthermore, a trader who identified herself simply as Mrs. Ajisafe, quipped: “There does not seem to be a government in Akure,” when asked by Newslodge about the absence of the governor in the state.
APC and PDP Trade Words
For the main opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), in the state, Mr. Akeredolu’s stay outside the state showed that he is not yet in a position to shoulder his responsibilities to the people.
The party’s spokesperson in the state, Kennedy Peretei, in a statement he issued a week after Akeredolu’s return from Germany, said: “Last week, we questioned the reason why Akeredolu called a meeting at his Ibadan residence instead from Ondo State.where he was elected to govern.Up to this point, the governor has not been seen near Ondo State.
“Akeredolu is beginning to fuel media speculation that, against the advice of his doctors, he was rushed to Nigeria to thwart an impeachment process. He also ordered an upgrade of his residence in Ibadan to include a replica of the executive council chambers, from where he intends to hold exco meetings.
“Does Akeredolu want to make Ibadan the capital of Ondo State? What is the rush to resume everything if you cannot come to Ondo State? Wouldn’t it have made more sense if she were still tending to his health abroad? Why did he say he had resumed when in fact he didn’t? Our party wishes to advise Akeredolu to come to Ondo State to complete his term.”
The APC, however, described the statement as an indication that the opposition party wanted the governor not to return from his medical vacation. Alex Kalejaiye, APC spokesperson in the state, said the governor has been attending to state affairs since his arrival.
“It is unbelievable that the PDP is angry with the placement of our governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu. This is a clear indication that the opposition party never wanted Arakunrin to return alive.
“The fact of the matter is that the Governor has been attending to state affairs since his arrival as he should, regardless of his location. This is an indisputable reality. I sympathize with the PDP; “It is a political party devastated by the crisis, devoid of ideas and no longer coherent or constructive.”
Akeredolu has not violated any law – Lawyer
Speaking on the controversy, Chairman, Section of Public Interest and Development (SPIDEL) of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Monday Ubani, said Akeredolu has not violated the constitution by administering Ondo State from Ondo State. Or me.
Ubani said since the governor is within the country and has not yet been certified as unfit according to the provision of the constitution, he can continue to govern his state.
“He is not even abroad, he lives within the jurisdiction of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He could possibly stay in Ibadan because he is receiving treatment at UCH, instead of coming from Ondo all the time, so there is nothing wrong with that. But if you are incapable due to medical problems, then a different rule applies.
“The certification process of their medical suitability and the assurance process that is also provided for in the constitution must be activated through which the members of the executive will promote a resolution and a medical team will be established to determine their suitability to continue in office. But that has not been activated,” Ubani said.
Meanwhile, the deputy governor received a petition from nine members of the state legislature accusing him of gross misconduct, as Aiyedatiwa continues to feel the heat of his boss’s wrath against him, from Ibadan.
Ironically, the lieutenant governor owes his tenure to the same kind of anger against his predecessor. Ajayi survived impeachment and ran in the 2020 gubernatorial election against his leader on the Zenith Labor Party ticket.