Posted by By Roland Ogbonnaya on
Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State has denied the rumour and reports making the rounds that he was weekend stopped by security operatives at the airport from traveling abroad.
Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State has denied the rumour and reports making the rounds that he was weekend stopped by security operatives at the airport from traveling abroad.
He condemned the reports, saying he was not stopped from his overseas' trip, but was summoned to Abuja by the Presidency. He added that his personal security details were not arrested, but described the reports as the handiwork of his political detractors and opponents.
Fayose, who was speaking to newsmen in Lagos, denied the report that he suspended his deputy, Chief Abiodun Aluko. He wondered how some people in the name of politics will wake up from their wrong side of the bed and begin to fabricate things that did not happen to distract his attention.
He said though he was billed to travel to Canada last week, but could not go again as the event was postponed. He said he was no where near the airport last Friday were he was allegedly stopped from traveling by the security operatives and his security details arrested and taken to Abuja.
Parading his security details, including his chief of security staff and ADC before newsmen, the governor said he was not at any time summoned last week to Abuja by the Presidency though Obasanjo has the right to summon any governor to Abuja at any time.
Fayose added that these allegations were politically motivated and has brought a lot of concern to him. "Though I am concerned by all these, I cannot be distracted. I wonder how people can wake up from the wrong side of the bed and begin to cook up stories against somebody," he said.
The governor, who was flanked by his deputy at the press conference, said it was not true that he suspended the deputy and stopped paying all the allowances accruing to his office, describing it as wicked insinuation by political detractors.
He said his deputy duly asked for a two-week vacation which he granted and was never on suspension. He confessed that it was not true that the governor has starved his office of funds as the allowances accrued to his office and his aids have been duly paid as at August 31.
He also wondered where the rumour peddlers got their story of his suspension.
The deputy governor also used the forum to address some political issues in the state. He described the suspension of the governor and his deputy by a faction in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state as a huge joke.
He said the authentic chairman of the party in the state is Chief Ropo Adesanya and the faction led by Chief Ojo Falegan, Bamidele Olimilua, former governor of the state and others is not recognised.
Senator Yinka Omilani, the national vice-chairman, South-West PDP had recently described the suspension of the governor by the faction of the party as illegal "in the sense that you canā??t suspend the governor, deputy, chairman of a party without due process. It is illegal and indiscipline on the part of Chief Ojo Falegan and others".
Speaking at the commencement of a three-day fasting and prayer organised for the state recently, Fayose said it was God that had been saving him from invincible forces which he described as the greatest problem.
"I depend absolutely on God and prayer. Anybody that had ever seen me patronising herbalists or bowing down to idols should expose me. It is God alone I know. It is Jesus alone I know. He is the only one that can save me from all invincible forces which is the greatest problem. I call on the name of God only because he is the sole owner of the heaven and the earth and whatever he has ordained can not be changed," he added.