The Chairman of the Alimosho Local Government Area, Jelili Sulaimon, has described as unjust the indefinite suspension imposed on him by the Lagos State House of Assembly on Monday.
The lawmakers suspended the chairman in a unanimous vote over alleged non-compliance, defiance, and an unyielding attitude towards the legislative House.
The Assembly stated that Sulaimon’s suspension was effective immediately.
During a plenary session, the lawmakers resolved that the Vice Chairman of the council, Akinpelu Johnson, should take over the management of the council’s affairs.
The House further instructed the council’s management, including the manager and treasurer, to recognise the authority of the Vice Chairman and provide him with all the necessary support to enable him to work effectively.
Moving a motion for Sulaimon’s suspension, the Chairman of the House Committee on Local Government Administration and Chieftaincy Affairs, Sanni Okanlawon, recalled that in April 2024, pandemonium broke out in the Iyana-Ipaja area of the Alimosho Local Government Area, resulting in the death of one Michael Ajayi.
Okanlawon, whose committee was assigned to investigate the cause of the pandemonium, alleged that Sulaimon masterminded the chaos.
According to Okanlawon, all stakeholders involved in the issue were invited, but Sulaimon allegedly continued to display misconduct towards the House committee.
“He should be suspended immediately, while the Vice Chairman, Akin Johnson, takes over with immediate effect,” he proposed.
The Majority Leader of the House, Noheem Adams, supported the call for Sulaimon’s suspension.
“The Alimosho council chairman does not follow procurement processes or the budget. There have been several acts of misconduct by him, and I support that the chairman be suspended indefinitely,” he said.
In his contribution, the Chairman of the House Committee on Public Accounts for Local Government, Nureni Akinsanya, referred to a report submitted by the Lagos State Auditor-General regarding Sulaimon’s activities.
The report highlighted the council chairman’s alleged consistent non-compliance with financial regulations, citing significant irregularities in his records.
Another lawmaker, Sa’ad Olumoh, also expressed concerns and requested that the House invite the Chairmen of Bariga LCDA and Odi-Olowo LCDA, Kolade Alabi and Rasak Ajala, respectively, as heads of Conference 57, to address the widespread disregard by council chairmen for governance protocols.
The Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa, who presided over the session, directed the Clerk, Olalekan Onafeko, to communicate the Assembly’s resolution to all relevant authorities.
In a telephone conversation with The PUNCH on Monday, the Alimosho LG Chairman, Sulaimon, denied all the allegations, stating that he had always honoured invitations from the House.
He criticised the suspension, asserting that the allegations were far from the truth.
“It’s absolutely far from the truth. There is no time they invite me that I don’t appear,” he told The PUNCH.
Sulaimon argued that suspending a government official could only be done if due process was followed.
“We are students of the Constitution of Nigeria. You know what the Constitution says—the National Assembly has the right to impeach the President if he is found guilty. Similarly, the state Assembly has the right to impeach the governor if due process is followed,” he emphasised.
He described his suspension as “a child’s play,” adding, “No matter what, when they call me a hundred times, I will definitely show up. And that is what I have been doing. Yes, they wrote a letter to me, and I replied. I have all the evidence to show that I responded, and they received it.”
According to him, the matter in contention stemmed from the control of a market, asserting that “The local government has the control and management powers of the market.”
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