No Ekiti lawmaker is under investigation over certificates – House

The Ekiti State House of Assembly has
described a report in The Punch newspaper
of Monday, July 25, that nine of its
lawmakers are being investigated over
certificate forgery as baseless, wicked and a
continuation of relentless efforts of faceless
enemies of the state to discredit the
government.The Assembly also noted that
the rumour that the lawmakers were in hiding
was a proof that “liars and enemies of
progress are at work,” as “the House held its
parliamentary meeting in the complex today
(Monday) without any fear, let or hindrance.”
According to a statement by the chairman,
House Committee on Information,
Honourable Gboyega Aribisogan, the House
was composed of professionals in different
fields of endeavour who had made their
impacts in their respective sectors.
“It has come to the attention of the
Ekiti State House of Assembly that
some enemies of the state, in their
unrelenting bid to discredit the state
government, have alleged, through an
apparently-sponsored story in The
Punch newspaper of Monday, July 25,
that nine of the 26 honourable
members of the House are under
investigation for alleged certificate
forgery.
“This is clearly a careless and
baseless allegation, considering that
all the members of the House were
duly screened by relevant government
agencies prior to their election into
the House. Besides, it is suspect that
the said story merely quoted a
nebulous and faceless source and it
appeared only in the said newspaper.
“No member of this House has been
invited for questioning by any
government agency over issue of
certificates. The records of academic
qualification, as presented to the
Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC), of all the
members are available in their
respective schools.
“For the avoidance of doubt, members
of the House are credible people
drawn from different professional
sectors and they have made marks in
their respective fields. This is a House
that has accountant, journalists,
medical doctor, retired civil servants,
technocrats, among others as
members.
“That the rumour that the lawmakers
were in hiding trailed the evil
allegation is further proof that it is
the figment of the imagination of the
authors. We converged on the
Assembly complex today for our
routine parliamentary meeting today
without any fear, let or hindrance,” he
said.
Aribisogan warned that “no amount of
mudslinging and evil shenanigan of the
enemies of the state government would make
us cringe. We are unwavering in our resolve
to assist the Ayodele Fayose-led government
in its effort to clear the mess that the APC-
led government of Dr Kayode Fayemi has
made of the state.”