BREAKING: Ondo Assembly Elects Bamidele Oloyelogun As New Speaker

Bamidele David Oloyelogun, the lawmaker representing Ifedore Constituency on Monday morning emerged the new Speaker of the crisis-ridden Ondo state House of Assembly, SaharaReporters can authoritatively report.

Mr. Oloyelogun became the new speaker of the Assembly with nine votes after beating Olamide George from Akure North Constituency ‘I’ who polled four votes during an election described by critics as shady.

Thirteen rebel lawmakers who suspended former female Speaker, Jumoke Akindele, from the Ondo State House of Assembly conducted the election of Mr. Oloyelogun,

SaharaReporters correspondent reported that Mr. Oloyelogun, who is presently a two-term member of the parliament, was favored by in the voting after the acting speaker, Malachi Coker, voluntarily stepped down from the seat in an apparently acting on a script.

During the election, Ogundeji Iroju, from Odigbo Constituency also emerged as the new Deputy Speaker, unopposed.

Mr. Ogundeji was the former spokesman of the rebel lawmakers opposed to Mrs. Akindele style of leadership in the Assembly.

Meanwhile, factional lawmakers loyal to the formal Speaker, Jumoke Akindele, has said they have not been carried along in the election conducted in the hallowed chamber of the Assembly today.

The faction explained that they didn’t boycott the election of the House of Assembly as currently being insinuated by the rebel faction, they claimed that they were not notified of any sitting scheduled for Monday.

Siji Akindiose, the spokesman for the faction, disclosed this in a terse message obtained by SaharaReporters.

“No notification was sent to us that there would be a sitting today and the House does not usually sit on Mondays and Fridays, which are reserved for committee activities,” he said.

Akindiose further disclosed that the factional lawmakers had on Sunday held a meeting with a senior aide to the governor on Legislative Matters, Abdusalam Taofeek to resolve the lingering crisis in the House.

He revealed that the faction loyal to Mrs. Akindele was surprised by the announcement of a new speaker this morning (Monday) without being carried along in the election.

 

Source: Sahara Reporters