The newly elected Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Yekini Idiaye, has accused his predecessor, Blessing Agbebaku, of poor leadership and corruption, saying lawmakers removed him because his leadership style was hindering the work of government.
Idiaye, who represents Akoko-Edo Constituency I and is a third-term lawmaker, emerged Speaker on Monday following Agbebaku’s resignation amid moves by lawmakers to impeach him.
Speaking with journalists after Monday’s plenary, Idiaye said the Assembly had faced several challenges under Agbebaku, including what he described as corruption and prolonged adjournments.
“The House was inaugurated on the 16th of June, 2023 under the leadership of Agbebaku, and since then we have been passing through a lot of challenges, corruption here and there, adjournment here and there, sometimes for 30 days without a cause. We are not happy with his leadership style. His leadership is poor, and it has been drawing the work of the government backwards,” he said.
Explaining the decision to remove Agbebaku, Idiaye said the lawmakers wanted to prevent anything that could undermine the administration of Governor Monday Okpebholo.
“That is why we removed him. We must encourage our performing governor. He is doing well, anything that will derail or stop our performing governor, we must stop it. That is why we changed him. I can assure all of you that we will do everything possible to support Governor Monday Okpebholo to move this state forward,” he added.
Idiaye’s emergence followed the Assembly’s zoning arrangement, under which the Speaker is expected to come from Edo North when the governor is from Edo Central Senatorial District.
As the oldest member representing Edo North, Idiaye was subsequently elected Speaker.
Members of the Assembly were also said to have visited the Government House to inform Governor Okpebholo of the change in leadership.
Agbebaku reportedly resigned earlier on Monday following moves to impeach him, with 17 of the 24 lawmakers said to have signed an impeachment notice against him on Sunday night.
His resignation was confirmed by his media aide, Ivy Ebojele, who said, “I can confirm the Speaker’s resignation but details will be made public later.”
Efforts to reach Agbebaku were unsuccessful as his telephone line was busy, while Ebojele had yet to issue a further statement on the circumstances surrounding his resignation.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
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