By Oyibo Salihu
Lokoja
Nine out of the 11 councillors that impeached the leader of Okene local government council, Kabiru Momoh Habib, last week have alleged threat to their lives.
The nine councillors also pointed accusing fingers at the chairman of the council for allegedly masterminding hoodlums to beat them to stupor.
Addressing newsmen yesterday in Lokoja, the affected legislators said they could no longer sleep in Okene for fear of being attacked by thugs who they alleged are with dangerous weapons.
Majority leader of the council, Abdul Ganiyu Mohammed, while showing his broken arms to newsmen, said he was beaten mercilessly along with some of the councillors when some group of thugs suspected to be sent by the council chairman, Ahmed Salawu Ogembe, invaded the chambers of the council shortly after the impeachment of the former council leader.
The majority leader, who said Habib was impeached for solely approving N10 million to the executive without the consent and approval of other councillors, noted that such act is not only detrimental to the development of the area, but a fragrant disobedience to constituted authority.
Presenting copies of the proceedings where the council leader was removed to newsmen, Mohammed said due process was followed in the impeachment process of Habib and the election of Ahmed Tijani Zubair, councillor representing Orietesu ward, as the new leader of the council.
The majority leader, who wondered why the impeached leader was now parading himself as the leader of the council, said Ahmed Zubair is now the new council leader
One of the councillors, Hon Yakubu Isah, said thugs suddenly jumped into the hallowed chamber of the council shortly after the sergeant-at-arms, Agomi Ibrahim, allegedly sneaked out of the meeting, pretending to go and ease himself, but went straight to the chairman’s office to brief him of their impeachment.
The newly elected leader, Tijani Zubair, accused the chairman of running the council as his private enterprise, saying the councillors’ welfare were not an issue to him while there is still backlog of arrears of salaries owed the council workers, which the chairman refused to pay.
Responding, the chairman of Okene Local Government, Alhaji Ahmed Salawu Ogembe, described as false his alleged involvement in the crisis of confidence rocking the legislative arm of the council.
Ogembe said as the chairman his duty was to treat the councillors equally without fear or favour, stressing that he has never paid them half salaries since they came on board as councillors.
He added that he has been addressing the welfare need of the councillors within the limited resources available to the council, saying that there was bound to be mistrust when expectations are higher than what is available.
