Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Hon Olamide Olajidi, has blamed the refusal of the Deputy Governor of the state, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, to withdraw cases in courts as a reason for the failure of the All Progressives Congress peace moves to materialise.
Speaker Olajidi said Ayedatiwa, was not ready for genuine reconciliation. Olajidi stated that the APC reconciliation committee headed by Alhaji Aminu Masari, in its bid to resolve the crisis, asked Aiyedatiwa to withdraw the court cases.
Speaking in Akure at the weekend, Speaker, Oladiji, said, “We met the National Chairman, and he specifically asked me how do we commence reconciliation. I told him that the reconciliation process has to start with the Deputy Governor. He is the one who took us to court, we cannot be reconciling ourselves when we have cases in court.
“Let him go to the court, withdraw all these cases, then we would know that we are now in for genuine reconciliation.
But the deputy governor has not done so. He has appealed some of the rulings of the lower court.
“As far as the House of Assembly is concerned, we are not doing anything. The cases are in the court and we would follow due process. We are following up the cases in the court.
On the division among the lawmakers, the Speaker said, “At times, when there is a political tussle like this, there can be insinuations, rumours, but in the House of Assembly, we are together. We told ourselves that it is an institution, and the institution must be protected. So, we are together”.
Aiyedatiwa had earlier said he remained committed to the ongoing reconciliation efforts of the National leadership of the APC.
Aiyedatiwa said, ” I affirm my commitment to the ongoing reconciliation efforts of the National leadership of our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) on the political situation in our State which is already yielding the much-needed tranquility in the State.”
