Ekiti Speaker faces contempt charge after failing to swear in lawmaker-elect

The Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Kola Oluwawole, has been summoned by the Federal High Court, Ekiti Division, to explain why he should not be committed to prison for disobeying its order to swear in a lawmaker-elect, Toyin Obayemi.

The court had declared Mr. Obayemi, who came second at the Peoples Democratic Party House of Assembly primary last year, the winner of the Ado-Ekiti Constituency 1 seat, after the actual ticket holder was found to have filed forged academic certificates.

One Odunayo Talabi, had emerged winner of the election, but was curiously substituted by the current occupant of the seat, Musa Arogundade, shortly after the primary.

But the court, in a judgment delivered by Justice Taiwo Taiwo on July 4, sacked
Mr. Arogundade and ordered that Mr. Obayemi be sworn in immediately, having been found to be the valid candidate for the April 11, 2015 State Assembly election.

The court held that Mr. Obayemi who came second in the PDP primary held in the constituency was the flag bearer after Mr. Talabi who came first was discovered to have presented fake academic certificates.

The court nullified Mr. Talabi’s substitution with Mr. Arogundade on grounds that evidence before it showed that he (Arogundade) fraudulently obtained an Abuja Federal High Court order to validate his candidature for the Assembly poll.

It also ordered Mr. Arogundade to refund all salaries and allowances he had collected since the Fifth Assembly was inaugurated on June 5, 2015.

In spite of the court judgment, the speaker refused to swear in Mr. Obayemi, citing a stay of execution filed by Mr. Arogundade.

But the stay of execution filed by both Messrs. Arogundade and Talabi was dismissed by the same court on October 31, 2016.

The contempt charge contained in Form 48 issued by the Federal High Court, Ado Ekiti and made available to PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday, was signed by the court’s Senior Registrar, Olayinka Sokoya.

The Form 48, marked FHC/AD/CS/17/2015 was entitled: “Notice of Consequence of Disobedience of Order of Court.”

“Take notice that unless you comply with the judgment of this Honourable Court delivered on this case on the 4th day of July, 2016 by Honourable Justice Taiwo Taiwo, you will be guilty of contempt of court and will be liable to be committed to prison,” it stated.

Mr. Obayemi had presented himself for inauguration on August 2 after serving a copy of the judgment and Certificate of Return on the Assembly.

He was blocked from entering the chambers and was reportedly bundled out of the complex by security officers on the order of the Speaker.