13th February, 2016
Godwin Osiyi, the erstwhile factional speaker of Kogi House of Assembly, has said that the leadership crisis in the House has been resolved.
Osiyi, who disclosed this in an interview with NAN on Saturday in Lokoja, said it took the intervention of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to resolve the impasse.
He said that the Acting National Chairman, Mr Uche Secondus, summoned members of the party in both factions to Abuja and advised them against allowing the executive arm to influence their choice of who led the house.
According to him, the chairman “pleaded passionately” with the two factions to sheath their sword and allow the incumbent speaker, Momoh-Jimoh Lawal, to continue in office pending the determination of legal issues surrounding the governorship election.
“For me, no sacrifice is too big for my party. We have decided to downplay our crisis, come together and resolve to support the leadership, hoping that the leadership has learnt from its mistakes.
“So, we have asked Momoh-Jimoh to continue with the hope that he will be responsive to the plight of the people and welfare of honourable members.
“I decided to let it go, no sacrifice is too big for my party, Kogi State and Nigeria,”he said
Osiyi said PDP members in the House, though now in the opposition, had resolved to support the governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, to succeed in the onerous task of steering the statecraft.
“There is enormous job on the executive governor of the state, we will support him in whatever way we can to succeed,” he said.
Buttressing the position of Osiyi, Momoh-Jimoh Lawal commended members of the House for the maturity exhibited with the amicable resolution of the leadership tussles which polarised the House in the last three months.
Lawal also reiterated the resolve of the House to work closely with Gov. Yahaya Bello to pilot the state towards attaining high level socio-economic and political advancement.
NAN recalls that 17 out of the 25 members of the assembly on Thursday December 10 moved to impeach the speaker Lawal through a motion by Ukubile Ochijenu-Acharu (PDP-Idah) and seconded by Zakari Osewu Mohammed (APC-Kogi-KK).