How Governorship Ambition Led to Olanusi’s Impeachment
Before his impeachment from office last Monday, the Ondo State Deputy Governor, Alhaji Alli Olanusi, was already acknowledging salutations as governor . According to sources among political players in the state, the former deputy governor believed nothing could stop him from dethroning his boss and occupy his seat before the end of June when a new Assembly would have been inaugurated.
Party sources informed that the deputy governor had designed a plan to upstage his boss, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, though in connivance with some members of the PDP.
A source mentioned that the first step in the process of actualising the plan was the timing of Alhaji Olanusi’s defection to the All Progressives Congress.
To have the desired effect, it was gathered that the former deputy governor deliberately waited for 48 hours to the presidential election to dump the ruling PDP for APC.
As events later turned out, the PDP could not deliver the state for President Goodluck Jonathan while the APC had victory.
After the March 28th victory of the APC, Olanusi’s confidence of replacing his boss as governor of the state soared.
From that time, Olanusi went about the state as governor in waiting and as a source puts it, he never pretended about his ambition.
“As a matter of fact, Baba had his cabinet list ready. And key offices had already been zoned, that was the reason Sola Oke who was part of the arrangement had to defect from the PDP to the APC before the state Assembly election because he was to be Baba’s deputy and further use the platform to actualise his own gubernatorial ambition,” a source volunteered.
The monumental loss suffered by the APC in the Assembly election however turned the table against Olanusi and his co-drivers. The opposition party was only able to get 5 out of the 26 seats in the Assembly.
Indication that the deputy governor may not survive the backlash of his failed ambition emerged when immediately after the April 11 election, youths in their numbers started trooping to the Governor’s Office in protest against the deputy governor.
The protesters later shifted their attention to the House of Assembly where members later raised a 7-point impeachment allegation against him.
Chief among reasons given for the impeachment move by the lawmakers was gross misconduct.
Allegations made against Alhaji Olanusi include permitting and condoning the perpetration of fraudulent activities in his office through Alhaji Bola Idris Olanusi, his younger brother and Special Assistant. The younger Olanusi was alleged to have procured false LPO’s allegedly with the knowledge of Alhaji Ali Olanusi and obtained from One Ehiso Resources International Limited, two (02) Trucks of AGO with forged documents .
The lawmakers further accused the deputy governor of engaging in political conduct “designed to undermine the office of the Governor by causing political disaffection and deliberately working at cross purposes with the Governor and the Executive Council of the State with a view to destabilizing the government by openly canvassing for the impeachment of the Governor following the Presidential Election conducted on 28th of March, 2015 which amounts to an act of gross misconduct under the provisions of the Constitution”, among other allegations.
The House Of Assembly later directed the Chief Judge of the state, Hon. Justice Olasehinde Kumuyi, to set up a panel to look into the allegations of gross misconduct levelled against the former deputy governor.
A seven-man panel was thus constituted with Mr Olatunji Stanley Adeniyan as Chairman.
At the panel sitting, Dr Benson Enikuomehin, appeared for Alli Olanusi while Dayo Akinlaja [SAN] represented the House of Assembly.
Enikuomehin, who said he was appearing for Olanusi on protest, argued on the issue of proper service of the notice of impeachment. He said Olanusi was not properly served to appear before the panel and argued that the panel cannot continue sitting, that it was Alhaji Olanusi’s son who instructed him to appear as his father was out of the country on a routine medical check up and had already written the governor to that effect.
In his counter argument, Dayo Akinlaja SAN, stressed that the fact that Enikuomehin appeared for Alhaji Olanusi testifies that his client was well served. He equally presented copy of a letter signed by the then deputy governor informing the governor of his intention to travel Monday, the 27th of April to prove that the deputy governor was indeed in the country.
A source close to the government revealed the governor was yet to accede to the request of his former deputy to travel even before the issue came up at the panel sitting.
Akinlaja prayed the panel to discountenance Enikuomehin’s claims stressing that the numerous evidence on ground attest to the fact that Olanusi was in the country and was well and properly served the summons as well as the notice of impeachment.
Akinlaja SAN later led Dr Kola Ademujimi, the Chief of Staff to Governor Mimiko and the Permanent Secretary, Deputy Governor’s office, Kehinde Temikotan, in evidence as witnesses on all the 7 allegations levelled against Olanusi.
Ademujimi and Temikotan provided both oral and documentary evidence to substantiate allegations that Olanusi abused his office by condoning his younger brother and Special Assistant who allegedly committed forgery, while he also pocketed about 40 million naira meant for his medical bills overseas with no evidence showing he ever made the trips.
Evidence was also led that he involved in absenteeism, truancy, breach of peace among cabinet members and the State at large.
In his final address, Akinlaja said the oral and documentary evidence on ground support the claims that Alhaji Olanusi is guilty of all seven allegations.
Following the outcome of the panel’s investigation, the House of Assembly effected the impeachment of Olanusi, thus putting an end to his dream of sacking his boss from office.
The Commissioner for Agriculture in the state, Alhaji Lasisi Oluboyo has since been sworn in to replace the impeached deputy governor.
Adebayo writes from Akure