An Oyo State High Court, in Ibadan, the state capital, on Thursday, dismissed a suit filed by the state’s Deputy Governor, Rauf Olaniyan, to stop the state House of Assembly from removing him from office.
Last month, the lawmakers initiated an impeachment move against Olaniyan.
Twenty four out of the 32 members of the Assembly had in a petition accused the state’s deputy governor of “gross misconduct, abuse of office, financial recklessness, abandonment of office, official duty, insubordination and other offences.”
The petition read, “This process, according to petitioners, is in accordance with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended in 2011. Section 188.”
But Olaniyan responded to all the allegations raised in the petition through his lawyer, Chief Afolabi Fashanu, SAN.
The deputy governor later went to court to challenge the Assembly’s impeachment move against him.
Justice Ladiran Akintola, while delivering judgment on Thursday, held that the House of Assembly did not breach any provision of the constitution in its attempt to impeach the deputy governor.
Justice Akintola averred that the lawmakers substantially complied with the provisions of Section 188 of the Constitution on the removal process.
The judge ruled that the originating summons filed by the claimant was purely legislative procedure and not judicial.