What led to the impeachment move and the governor’s gambit to stampede the lawmakers using police and planting moles in the state House of Assembly remain a jig saw puzzle in Enugu state. RAPHAEL EDE writes on the impeachment fury as Governor Sullivan Chime tackles lawmakers.
The feud between Governor Sullivan Chime and members of Enugu State House of Assembly over the recent probe of the state’s finances and questionable allocation of government lands to private individuals has escalated.
Hundreds of policemen acting on the orders of the governor stormed the premises of the State Assembly Complex and sealed it off in the early hours of yesterday to prevent the Speaker, Hon. Eugene Odo and his members from holding their scheduled sitting today.
Both the speaker and the lawmakers and the House staff were denied access to their offices by the police who claimed to be acting on the orders of the governor.
It was gathered that the speaker and the 13 members later found their way into the legislative chamber at 6.28 following complaints by the speaker to the commissioner of police who immediately directed that the lawmakers should be allowed into the assembly complex to continue with their legislative business.
The house presided by Speaker, Eugene Odo immediately commenced the process of impeaching Governor Sullivan Chime for allegedly forging the N12 billion 2012 Supplementary Budget and distorting the appropriation law, which the house described as a grave violation of the constitution which he swore to protect and defend.
The Clerk of the House, Christopher Chukwurah was directed by the house to serve the notice of impeachment signed by 15 members of the House including the speaker to the governor immediately.
Other impeachable offences listed against the governor include inflation of the contract sum for the construction of the new State Secretariat complex from N13 billion to N21 billion without recourse to the House of Assembly, award of the contract to Arab Contractors Limited even when another contractor submitted a lower bid, as well as using the police to deny the lawmakers access to the House for their sitting on Monday
The house however, suspended the Deputy Speaker, Chime Oji who was recently elected to represent Enugu North/South Federal Constituency, the chairman house committee on health, Hon. Emeka Ogbuabor representing Isi-Uzo state constituency and Deputy House Leader, John Kevin Ukwuta for alleged anti-House activities.
The lawmakers had complained that the governor was using some members of the House to disrupt the activities of the House for refusing to approve the N11 billion loan requested by the governor.
However, the mace was taken away after the sitting of the House.
The lawmakers had recently commenced investigation of the last-minute actions of the governor particularly the allocation of reserved government lands to his family members and some individuals for erection of private houses especially within the three-arm zone which the lawmakers seriously condemned the act.
They also deliberated on the petition against the alleged contract scam at the Enugu State Universal Basic Education Board, ENSUBEB and asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC to probe activities of the board.
The Accountant General of the State, Paschal Okorie, was also summoned last week to explain why the state government has refused to release monthly subventions to the House and other ministries since March and after his appearance, he was asked to submit to the House records of funds received and disbursed from January to April this year.
Blueprint gathered that amazing revelations were made in the report submitted to the House by the Accountant General, which the lawmakers had decided to reconvene to continue further deliberation of the state’s finances as contained in the submitted report yesterday (Monday).
Political pundits believe that the sealing off the legislative house might prevent the lawmakers from sitting forthwith to stop the probe.
The G-15 lawmakers who signed the impeachment notice include Hon. Eugene odo, 2. Sunday Udeokoye, 3. Okechukwu Nwoke, 4. Ikechukwu Ezeugwu, 5. Elochuchukwu Ugwueze, 6. Iloabuchi Aniagu, 7. Nze Michael Onyeze, 8. Anichukwu John Nwankwo, 9. Theresa Egbo, 10. Dame Nkechi Omeje Ogbu, 11. Chika Eneh representing Governor Chime’s Udi South, 12. Mathias Ekweremadu Jnr, 13. Paul Okechukwu Ogbe, 14. Anthony Ogidi, and 15. Nelson Uduji
Immediately the house concluded plenary at about 7.05am the suspended Deputy Speaker and six other members of the House including the Deputy Governor-elect, Hon. Cecilia Ezeilo walked into the chamber with another mace looked fake and conducted another sitting. One member later joined them.
After a short prayer, Hon. John Kevin Ukwuta, who was also suspended by the Odo-led group, moved a motion that Hon. Johnbull Nwagu who was suspended by the House should be recalled and Hon. Chinedu Nwamba seconded the motion.
The Chime group of nine lawmakers, however, lifted the suspension slammed on Nwagu for misconduct and invited him to join the group bringing their number to nine.
Hon. Ukwuta thereafter moved another motion calling for the suspension of the Speaker Eugene Odoh and six other members in his group including Anichukwu Nwankwo, Okechukwu Nwoke, Paul Ogbe, Nze Michael Onyeze, Chika Eneh and SKE Udo-Okoye. The motion was approved by the nine members.
The principal officers among the suspended were also stripped of their positions and benefits.
Ukwuta further moved for the nomination of other colleagues to fill the vacancies created by the suspension and nominated Chinedu Nwamba, representing Nsukka East constituency to be sworn in as Speaker of the House.
The motion was approved and Chinedu Nwamba was sworn in as Speaker of the G-9.
Speaking with our correspondent in an interview the former National Auditor of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Raymond Nnaji described the action of the house as commendable even though the action is coming late but saying that it is better late than never.
According to him, “I must have to tell you that the action of the house is a good omen because the activities of the governor lately looks as if to say that we have no legislature in the state any more where the governor can do anything he likes and get away because he want to leave the stage believing that government have come to an end.
“He felt to know that another government is coming up to continue from where he stopped all even change certain things or wrongs he (Chime) mighty have done that is not in tandem with the programme of the new government”.
Hon Nnaji said though there are too many instances for the impeachment process however regretted that the impeachment is coming very late to the extent that the man has 25days to go.
“I know quite well that Governor Sullivan Chime have distorted the 2012, 2014 appropriation law of the state without reference to the house of assembly. Secondly the way he has been allocating government re-severed lands though the ‘land use act’ gave him the opportunity to allocate lands but not purposely allocating it to his family members and private individuals to have access to such lands persevered for the interest of the public.”
The PDP chieftain didn’t waste time in condemning the activities of the six member group lead by the impeached deputy leader sitting after the house dully constituted has concluded plenary is illegal noting that the other 3 members joined them new that they have been impeached and as such their actions is illegal just as he queried their legality.
“They are coming to factionalize so that the impeachment would not succeed but they are illegal members as long as constitutional provision is concerned”, in the first place where do they got the mace since the speaker and the clerk of the house had gone away with the house mace.
A public affairs analyst and director Voice for Democracy (MOVERS NIGERIA), Chief Ifeanyichukwu Okonkwo described it as democracy in action saying that it is all part of the change Nigerians are yearning for.
He said it is the same house used to impeach the former deputy governor for maintaining chicken now that want to impeach the governor for breaching the appropriation law, stressing that what goes around comes around.
Commenting on the impeachment notice, the southeast zonal director Civil Liberty Organization (CLO), Olu Omotoya said the impeachment proceeding is belated stressing that the house was there for eight years and it remained 25days to the house suddenly discovered wrongs from the executive. More so the house has not certified the two-third majority required by the law.
“Supreme Court has pronounced that in issue of impeachment proceeding all the constituencies must participate. Even if a member is disqualified by INEC such impeachment cannot continue until by-election is conducted and concluded and new member come in.
All constituencies must be represented in impeachment of the governor that is the position of the law.”
Omotoya argued that in impeachment proceedings if you don’t get all the members present you don’t have the power to suspend anybody to get two-third. “All the members must be present that is what the Supreme Court has said. If you are 24 all the 24 must be present in sitting and more so it must be by two-third majority of 24 members which 16 must sign for the impeachment.
The motion that will authorize the Chief Judge must be supported by 16 members. So if you are not 16 or more and you said you are passing such motion it is considered illegal, and if you discovered that there are fraud in the appropriation law, the proper thing is to ask EFCC or any of the agencies empowered under the law to investigate it”, he affirmed, noting that the house lack the power to carry out criminal investigation on the governor.