In an unprecedented development, seven members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, backed by 200 policemen, have impeached the speaker of the state House of Assembly, Adewale Omirin.
The police reportedly prevented 18 APC lawmakers and the substantive speaker from entering the assembly complex, while the 7 PDP legislators are believed to have also installed PDP lawmaker, Dele Olugbemi as the acting Speaker.
Governor Ayodele Fayose is billed to swear-in Caretaker Committees in the 18 local government areas of the state this morning without the approval of the House, hence the illegal impeachment of Omirin by the 7 lawmakers of the Peoples Democratic Party.
The Ekiti State House of Assembly, has, however, denied impeaching its Speaker. According to the lawmakers, an acting speaker was only appointed to allow it carry out urgent business of the assembly in the absence of the substantive speaker and his deputy.
Meanwhile, the APC has released a statement on the development through its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in Abuja.
“The issue of the Caretaker Committees, which Gov. Ayodele Fayose plans to swear in on Monday after the illegal approval by the House, is sub judice, hence the House cannot even discuss it not to talk of acting on it. Also, while the Governor was advised by the Clerk of the House that seven members out of 26 do not form a quorum, he said after all, only eight of 24 members in the Plateau House of Assembly impeached then Gov, Joshua Dariye in 2006!”
“We know that President Goodluck Jonathan, who is the leader of the PDP, has elevated impunity to an art, but he has simply overreached himself with his party’s latest show of shame in Ekiti. The fact that the President’s body language supports impunity has emboldened officials elected under the banner of the PDP and appointed by his Administration to perpetrate acts of impunity with impunity.”
“Over 200 policemen could not have been deployed for this illegal act in Ekiti without the knowledge of the Inspector General of Police. Yet, the same IG trampled the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by assuming the powers of the court to unilaterally withdraw the security detail of House of Representatives Speaker Aminu Tambuwal.”
“Can the IG claim not to be aware that his men are offering protection to only seven out of the 26 members of the Ekiti House of Assembly? Does he honestly believe it is part of the responsibility of the police, which is being funded by tax payers, to become the enforcement arm of the PDP? Does he believe that the police that is empowered to enforce the law should play a lead role in breaking it?”
The impeached Speaker, Omirin and Governor Fayose have had series of disagreements since the swearing-in of the governor. Fayose accused the speaker and other All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers in the House of deliberately rejecting the list of Commissioners sent to the Assembly, in an attempt to frustrate his government.
source: vanguardngr.com
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