The impeached Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Adewale Omirin, has asked a Federal High Court in Lagos to restrain the Assembly from further carrying on with any form of legislative function.

Omirin and his impeached Deputy, Adetunji Orisalade, prayed the court to restrain legislative activities in the Ekiti Assembly pending when a suit they filed in opposition to their impeachment would be resolved.

The two were on November 20, 2014 impeached by seven members of the House belonging to the Peoples Democratic Party.

The other plaintiffs in the motion filed before Justice Saliu Saidu are the current 17 All Progressives Congress members of the Ekiti legislature.

The defendants, 14 in number, include the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, 8th defendant; the incumbent Speaker of the House, Dele Olugbemi 1st defendant; his Deputy, Olayinka Abeni, 7th defendant; the Inspector-General of Police, Suleiman Abba; and the Department of State Service.

Also joined as defendants are the three commissioners cleared by the House under Olugbemi’s speakership-Oweseni Ajayi (Attorney-General), Kayode Eso (Commissioner for Works) and Toyin Ojo (Commissioner for Finance).

Other defendants are members of the House loyal to Olugbemi, namely Samuel Ajibola, Adeojo Alexander, Adeloye Adeyinka, Isreal Ajiboye, Fatunbi Olajide and the Commissioner of Police in Ekiti.

In the application, Omirin and others are asking Justice Saidu to make an order of interim injunction restraining Olugbemi and Abeni from parading themselves or acting as the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House.

They are also asking the court to restrain Fayose and his agents “from generally interfering in any manner with the legislative functions of the plaintiffs and particularly from recognising, dealing, associating or relating with or assigning duties or responsibilities that would validate the illegal assumption of duties of the 12th, 13th and 14th defendants as competent commissioners of Ekiti State Government.”

According to them, not restraining the defendants “would constitute an infraction on the constitutional exercise of the legislative powers of the House of Assembly of Ekiti State.”

The plaintiffs are further praying the court to restrain the 9th, 10th and 11th defendants and their privies “from exercising powers against the plaintiffs and their privies, other than the lawful operational use of their powers, to interrupt, retard or otherwise interfere with the constitutional exercise of the legislative functions of the plaintiffs within the premises of the Ekiti State House of Assembly Quarters”

They also prayed for an order “compelling the defendants to grant to the plaintiffs unfettered access to their legislative quarters and or official quarters in order to carry out their constitutionally bestowed duties as Speaker, Deputy Speaker and respective capacities within the Ekiti State House of Assembly and to forthwith restore the rights, privileges and paraphernalia of their respective offices in accordance with their constitutional rights and mandate.”

The court has scheduled Monday, December 15, 2014, to hear the application.

Meanwhile, Justice Saidu has granted the plaintiffs the leave of the court to serve on the defendants the originating summons filed in opposition to their impeachment.

The judge ordered the plaintiffs to serve the process on the defendants outside of jurisdiction of the court through substituted means, including the use of newspaper advertisements.

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