The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the inauguration of Edward Onoja as deputy governor in Kogi state as a complete nullity, saying the action has no place in the nation’s laws.
The party in a statement issued by its national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, claimed it was scandalous to Nigeria’s judicial system that the impeachment which had no basis was carried out.
According to the party, the judiciary panel head by the Chief Judge of Kogi state, Justice Nasir Ajana, had acquitted the state deputy governor, Elder Simon Achuba, of any misconduct.
It lamented the sudden flipped to conform to an odious plot by an alleged desperate Governor Yahaya Bello to forcefully remove the deputy governor.
The statement reads: “The action of the Kogi Chief Judge has heavily jeopardized the integrity of the judiciary and capable of bringing the institution to public disrepute if not immediately checked.
“Our party insists that the Chief Judge of Kogi state, in staging an illegal inauguration of Edward Onoja, as a deputy governor, while the office has not become constitutionally vacant, amounts to gross misconduct, which cannot be accommodated under our laws.
“The PDP alerts that this is a clear demonstration of the reprehensible and sacrilegious design by Governor Yahaya Bello to entangle, drag down and corrupt the institution of the judiciary, cause a constitutional crisis, trigger mayhem and derail the smooth conduct of the November 16 governorship election in the state.
“This is because there is no way there can be two deputy governors in the same state, more so as the people of Kogi state had already registered their anger and resentment against this illegality in the public space.
“The party, therefore, calls on the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mohammed Tanko, to take immediate steps to save Kogi State from a plunge into anarchy and chaos”.
