There have been several divergent reports on the outcome of the meeting of President Bola Tinubu with members of the Ondo State House of Assembly and other stakeholders over the lingering political crisis in the state. Punch reports.
President Tinubu had met with the leadership of the Assembly and the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress in the state, at the State House, Abuja, late at night on Friday, in a bid to resolve the crisis.
The crisis between Governor Rotimi Akeredolu and his deputy began after the governor returned to the country from a medical vacation in Germany. Thereafter, the state House of Assembly commenced an impeachment process against the deputy governor over allegations of gross misconduct.
The development had led to division in the Assembly and the state Executive Council as well as the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress, hence the meeting with President Tinubu at the presidential villa on Friday night.
All parties in the meeting were said to have resolved that the status quo should remain which means Akeredolu should remain the governor, Aiyedatiwa remains the deputy governor, and that there should be no. impeachment.
Other resolutions, according to the Speaker of the Assembly, Mr Olamide Oladiji, include that the House of Assembly should remain one, the state Executive Council should remain intact without sacking any member, and the party executive should remain intact.
Speaking about the matter on Saturday, the House spokesman and Chairman House Committee on Information, Mr Olatunji Oshati, said the President had done well in wading into the crisis.
He said, “We just have to thank God, the most important thing is peace, and it is a win-win situation, so it’s not as if a particular person has won, the president has designed that it is a win-win situation, we give it to him as that is a kind of wisdom we expect from our leaders.
“The state will be calmed now and we beg our people to go on with their normal activities and let things move forward because even in the House we have a lot of things to do, we have budget defense and many more, so we thank God that this is over, and we will move on. Let the deputy governor remain the deputy governor and the governor remains a governor.”
Similarly, the state chairman of the party, Mr Ade Adetimehin, also declared that the crisis was over, following the intervention of the President.
When asked whether, at the meeting, President Tinubu directed that the deputy governor should be declared acting governor by the Assembly, in the absence of Governor Akeredolu, the chairman said it was a party matter that would be resolved.
“The President had intervened as the crisis has been laid to rest, the rest is our family affairs,” Adetimehin stated.
Meanwhile, the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party has said the intervention of President Bola Tinubu could not resolve the crisis.
The opposition party, through its Publicity Secretary, Mr Kennedy Peretei, described the nocturnal meeting as a mere window dressing, stressing that if Akeredolu does not return to the state, there won’t be any meaningful resolution of the crisis.
Also, an Ondo State All Progressives Congress pressure group, Ondo Solidarity Forum, in a communique issued by its acting chairman, Femi Ogunleye, and publicity secretary, Kayode Fasua, on Saturday, applauded Tinubu for his well-timed intervention in the political logjam in the state.
The group stated that it had become vindicated by its stance that Aiyedatiwa, should continue as acting governor, following Akeredolu’s absence.
It added that “the crisis between the deputy governor and a section of the Ondo State House of Assembly is the handiwork of a few persons in the state cabinet, who are best described as the cabal; because they individually want to succeed Akeredolu as the next governor of Ondo State.”