9 HoA Members Are Needed To Form Quorum, Fayose Got It, Buy Someone In Rivers Can’t Get 12-Olayinka

Lere Olayinka, an aide to Nyesom Wike, has stirred debate by comparing how two governors handled their State Houses of Assembly during political crises. His focus was on former Ekiti State governor Ayodele Fayose and current Rivers State governor Siminalayi Fubara.

In a post via X, according to Olayinka, when Fayose was elected governor in 2014, his party, the PDP, had only one member in the 26 seat Ekiti State House of Assembly. This put Fayose in a weak position at the start. However, before he was sworn in, the number of PDP lawmakers had increased to seven, with two more APC members quietly supporting him. In Ekiti, only nine lawmakers are needed to form a quorum and conduct official business. Fayose managed to reach that number, which allowed the Assembly to function and reduced opposition pressure.

Olayinka contrasted this with the situation in Rivers State. The Rivers State House of Assembly has 32 members, and 12 are needed to control proceedings. Governor Fubara reportedly had the support of four lawmakers. Instead of building alliances to gain more supporters, one of the four was appointed as Chief of Staff, reducing the number to three. Olayinka described this as a poor political decision.

In his words, “In Ekiti, 9 House of Assembly members are needed to form quorum to sit, and Fayose got the number required. But someone in Rivers State can’t get 12 out of 32 House of Assembly members to his side.”

Here’s a screenshot of his post.

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