A cardinal ingredient of democracy is the separation of powers among the various arms of government. The principle of checks and balances is a deliberate hurdle to prevent tyranny, abuse of authority and recourse to dictatorship. It is against the spirit of constitutional rule for one branch of government to seek to interfere with the functions of the other. Indeed, any attempt by one to muscle the other amounts to undermining the rule of law and a step to stifle democracy.
The raging tussle between the executive branch and the legislatureacross the country is unsavory for thecountry’sfledgling democracy. In Abuja, Adamawa, Plateau, Edo and Rivers, the two tiers of government are in dire combat. While some legislatures are in turmoil owing to in-fighting to gain political control, others are facing hostility from those exercising executive powers.
Two instances are particularly troubling. The Minister of Petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, along with the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Petroleum Product Marketing Company (PPMC), have gone to court in a desperate bid to stop the House of Representatives from probing their accounts. The minister and key managers of the petroleum agencies have shunned an invitation to appear before the House. They had argued that they required the consent of President Jonathan to grant the request of the Legislature. Last week, Plateau State Governor, Jonah Jang, towed a similar line when he directed all civil servants to disregard any invitation from the State House of Assembly.
The governor issued a directive to stop the assembly from probing alleged gross financial misconduct leveled against some agencies and officials of the state government. A memo issued by Izam Azi, a permanent secretary, directed all appointees and civil servants not to appear before the assembly in respect of a petition by Plateau Patriotic Front.
Like President Jonathan has tried to shield Mrs. Madueke from explaining her role in the stupendous spending on aircraft charter, Pa Jangis desperate to cover his shadow by asking his son, Yakubu Jang, to secure a court injunction stopping Plateau State House of Assembly from examining the petition before it.
Therecent pronouncement of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, on a deliberate encroachment on the powers of the legislature by the judiciary through court injunctions engineered by the executive arm has some merit. Employing court orders to stifle or abort the probes initiated by the National Assembly, the Speaker argued, was unconstitutional and smacked of double standards. He described it as “a slap on the principle of separation of powers”.
Tambuwal also alluded to a “dawn of a disturbing trend whereby people now go to court to stop the National Assembly from exercising its constitutional mandate and conducting its internal operations.This is unheard of in jurisdictions where genuine democracy is practiced and venerated.” We agree with him.
The provision of oversight functions in the Constitution is expedient to prevent abuse of power, promote accountability and good governance. Sadly the National Assembly, in a few instances, has been less transparent and altruisticin discharging this task. Nevertheless, those who seek to use loopholes in the law to pilfer from the public purse should be stopped. No public officer must be allowed to drag the judiciary into the filthy stench in political closets.
The leaders in the various legislative houses must rise to the challenge of making oversight instrument serve its purpose; to expose a growing culture of impunity among public officers who are employing desperate means to resist the ethos of accountability.
