Impeachment Of Engr Olaniyan As Oyo Deputy Governor Illegal – Sen Folarin

*says APC ready to stand by him

By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan

The Oyo State Governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Teslim Folarin on Monday, said the impeachment of Engineer Rauf Olaniyan as the deputy governor of the state by the State House of Assembly is illegal and lacks  respect for the rule of law.

Senator Folarin in a statement personally signed by him, berated members of the Oyo State House of Assembly over the impeachment of Engineer Olaniyan and that   APC would stand by him in this period of his ordeal.

According to Senator Folarin,  members of the Oyo State House of  Assembly should ” remember that posterity would judge whatever they do today”, as the process, which they follow in removing the deputy governor contradicts the tenets of the Constitution.

While appealing  to APC members in Oyo state to remain calm, he  Senator said Engineerr Olaniyan who has since defected to the major opposition party would appeal the impeachment in the Court of Appeal and that APC as a party would not relent in providing alternative to unruly and undemocratic acts of the Peoples Democratic Party (APC) led administration in the state.

Senator Folarin pointed out that said the committee set up by the Chief Judge of the state to investigate the deputy governor also showed it lacked integrity, saying, why the committee would give the deputy governor just 15 minutes to appear before it.

The APC governorship candidate stressed further that the Chief judge of Oyo state breached his oath of office by ignoring the service of notice of appeal and application for injunction pending appeal when he proceeded to constitute the investigation committee.

He maintained that despite the intervention of the legal adviser to Engineer Olaniyan that he needed time to prepare himself for the allegations leveled against him, the Chief Judge set up committee to carry out his bidding, adding that the illegal impeachment does not stop the court of appeal and by extension the Supreme to do their job in days to come.

Senator Folarin also expressed reservation over the way the State’s Chief Judge set up a 7-man committee, adding that there are more questions to be asked over the hurry behind the process.

The APC governorship candidate said the impeachment of Engineer Olaniyan would not just fail but that the consequences would, in the nearest future, hunt those orchestrating it on the fact that similar moves in some states failed, adding that the Oyo State House of Assembly lawmakers action was a pure disregard to the laws of the country because a service of notice of appeal and application for injunction is pending when the Chief Judge proceeded to constitute the investigation committee.