Anxiety as 8 lawmakers serve Ortom impeachment notice

Eight of the 30-member House of Assembly in Benue state, have commenced impeachment move against Governor Samuel Ortom.
The group, made up of lawmakers of All Progressives Congress extraction, is led by the recently impeached Speaker, Terkimbi Ikyange, who was removed from office last week before the House proceeded on recess.
It was a drama of sort when the two factional groups, conveyed their ‘sessions’ simultaneously in the House and the old Banquet Hall of Government House, Makurdi, respectively.
Governor Ortom, alongside some 10 lawmakers, last week, dumped the APC for the Peoples Democratic Party after weeks of speculation, citing dictatorial tendencies of the party leader in the state, Senator George Akume.
The ‘impeachment notice’ But in what appeared a sharp response to the governor’s decision, some APC lawmakers met yesterday and served him a notice of impeachment, while the 22-member group disowned same and suspended the former group.
The two groups arrived at the resolutions at two separate sessions, at the end of which both factions slammed a six-month suspension on each other.
While the Ikyange-led group which held their sitting in the hallowed chambers suspended 15 out of the 22 members who earlier impeached him, the group led by the new Speaker, Titus Uba, also at the old Banquet Hall, sat and suspended seven members of the Ikyange group.
Our reporter gathered that Ikyange, who was afterwards also suspended, had, along with other seven members of his group at about 5.am, stormed the assembly complex in a bus, with heavily armed policemen who blocked the road leading to the state assembly, and denying the 22 members access to the complex.
It was further gathered that when the alleged plot to impeach Governor Ortom leaked, some youths numbering over 100, were mobilised to stop the action as early as 5.am.
The youths, blocked the assembly ahead of the arrival of the security personnel, allegedly deployed from Abuja by the Inspector General of Police, Idris Ibrahim.
But the police were to later disperse the protesting youths with teargas, a development that ultimately forced staff members and journalists who had gone to the complex to cover the sitting, out of the complex.
Though some assembly sources who spoke to Blueprint on condition of anonymity said only eight members were at the session, the former speaker, while briefing newsmen at his residence, claimed it was 12 members that sat.
‘Our grouse with Ortom’ The former speaker alleged that the impeachment move against Ortom was based on a motion earlier made by the former majority leader, Benjamin Adanyi, who accused the governor of gross mismanagement of state resources.
He also alleged the embezzlement of local government funds to the tune of N33billion, purported cornering of state funds, citing the investigation of N22 billion by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and the reckless spending of state funds in search of party platforms to contest in 2019 and other issues, as reasons for the planned impeachment.
While accusing the governor of underperformance, Ikyange claimed that the Ortom-led executive had not commissioned a single project in the last three years, adding that the allegations against the governor were weighty.
For the suspended 15 members, the former speaker alleged they were found to have been involved in behaviour capable of bringing disrepute to the House and the good people of the state.
“The governor has performed poorly which has resulted in suffering amongst the people.
We have also gotten a court order directing banks to give us mandate on account opening of some workers who are not paid salaries.
I will serve the governor the impeachment notice in seven (7) days according to law,” he said.
Our story, says 22-member group But briefing newsmen after their sitting at the Government House, the ad-hoc committee chairman on media and publicity, Mr.
Paul Biam, described the sitting by the Ikyange group as illegal.
He said the former speaker and other principal members were earlier removed from the office and that 22 members of the House went further to obtain a court injunction stopping him from parading himself as speaker.
According to him, the eightmember faction presided over by the former speaker, did not even form a quorum.
Biam said the conduct exhibited by the sacked speaker and seven other members was a clear act of illegality and a disregard for the law.
“In spite of the injunction, we went to the House to conduct our legislative duty but were refused access, while the Ikyange group was escorted by armed personnel and armoured tanks into the complex where they sat without the clerk and a mace.
“Therefore, we have resolved to suspend the seven (7) members who took part in that sitting.
They did not form quorum.
“We are also calling on the international community to beam their searchlight on Benue state as well as stakeholders to show concern in the events so as to deepen democracy’, Biam further appealed.
Ortom But speaking to journalists on the development, Governor Ortom said Nigeria was fast becoming a shithole as described by the US President Donald Trump.
He expressed worry over the rising issues of illegality, noting that it was shocking that eight of the 30 members of the state legislature would be given cover by security agencies to carry out an illegality.
Governor Ortom accused the leader of the All Progressives Congress in the state, Senator George Akume of being behind the crisis, expressing worry that security personnel who, ordinarily, should be neutral in their duty, were being used by individuals to carry out shady deals.
“Today, I realise why President Trump called Africa a shithole.
I am sure the president is aware of the impunity being perpetrated by IG and DSS in the state.
“This morning, Police from Abuja, in Benue and DSS, acting on the instructions of the APC leader Akume, and Inspector General of Police, blocked the Assembly and barred 22 members of the House of Assembly from going about their lawful duties.
“The same Police provided security for seven members and the impeached speaker, to go against court injunction and sit.
“How can 8 members suspend 22 members? Only the eight members also claimed they sat and have resolved to serve me impeachment notice.
This really shows the shithole we are in,” Governor Ortom added.
On the fraud allegation against him by a faction of the House, Governor Ortom said, it would be pointless for him to comment on allegations made against him during an illegal sitting.
He said state government has evidence to prove against Ikyange on monies he allegedly collected from government and could not account for as speaker.
…Slams Oshiomhole On comments by the national chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole over his defection, he said the APC chair was being overzealous, adding that he lacked the moral standards to query anyone on issues of corruption.
“Oshiomhole, had just few weeks ago, rained praises on me and insisted that he will do anything to ensure that I remain in the APC.
For him to make a 360 turn and begin demonising me raise questions to his integrity.
Is he saying now that I lost political value because I defected to the PDP? “For God’s sake, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria grants us the right to freedom of association.
Everything has gone wrong with the APC, that is why for the first time in the history of Nigeria, people are moving massively from the ruling party to the opposition parties,” Ortom noted.
Saraki, Dogara, others alarmed Meanwhile, Senate President Abubakar Bukola Saraki and Speaker, House of Representatives, Rt.
Hon.
Yakubu Dogara, have described the development in Benue as “a desecration of the legislative sanctity.” They made the position known in a joint statement yesterday by Saraki’s Special Adviser (Media and Publicity), Yusuph Olaniyonu and that of the Speaker, Turaki Hassan, in Abuja The duo also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to call the police to order and stop being used to achieve political purposes.
The statement read: “We have monitored closely the development in Benue state in which the impeached Speaker, Terkimbir Ikyange, led seven other members to serve impeachment notice on the state Governor, Samuel Ortom, while the 22 other members who constitute more than two-third majority have been prevented from having access to the chamber.
We believe this is illegality and does not conform to parliamentary procedure on impeachment.
“We also note with surprise the role of the police in these undemocratic events in which the minority is seeking to impeach a governor against the position of the majority.
We believe it is the sacred institution of the legislature that is being desecrated and rubbished in all these negative developments.
“The situation in Benue state House of Assembly has grave implication for the nation’s democracy and it represents a throw-back to the period of dictatorship in our country.
It also represents how the Nigeria police are being misused to achieve political end.
“In a statement recently, the Presidency derisively referred to an era in the past where a minority number of legislators was used to impeach governors who were unfriendly with the Federal Government.
What we are seeing in Benue now is a return to that inglorious era.
“We believe this unlawful and unconstitutional move to impeach Governor Samuel Ortom by a minority should be condemned by all lovers of democracy, at home and abroad.
We call on President Muhammadu Buhari to call the police to order and prevent a break-down of law and order.
We also call on friends of Nigeria in the international community to lend their voice in condemning the perpetration of illegalities and actions that can subvert our democracy.
“There is already a tense atmosphere in Benue state following the recent killings.
Nobody should encourage any action or move which may exacerbate the security situation in the North central state.
As leaders of the Federal legislature, we are ready to work with our colleagues in both chambers of the National Assembly to prevent any attempt to destroy any state legislature or use it to derail democracy.” R-APC calls on lovers of democracy Also in a similar reaction, the Reformed All Progressives Congress, has called on lovers of democracy all over the world to save Benue from the ‘democratic anomalies’ happening in the state.
RAPC national Publicity Secretary, Kassim Afegbua, made the group’s position known yesterday in a statement in Abuja.
He said: “It is shocking to note that despite all the illegalities being perpetrated in Benue state over the laughable impeachment notice by eight members of the state Assembly, President Mohammadu Buhari has not deemed it fit and proper to respond and condemn the outright illegalities.
That goes to suggest that he has been the chief promoter of undemocratic illegalities that have consistently undermined our democratic engagements in the last three years.
“It is astounding to note that despite all the infractions in the political process; the polity is consciously charged to ridicule us and make us a laughing stock in the comity of nations before the very eyes of a president who preaches anticorruption.
The Benue scenario has again brought out our penchant for the bizarre making us look so stupid in the eyes of the world.
“On the one hand, the APC party leadership declared that they aren’t losing sleep over our members’ activities ostensibly to present fake personae, but it has consistently mounted pressure on our members to capitulate under the influence of mouth-watering promises.
“Now that our member, Governor Ortom has given the APC red card, and deservedly so, heaven has been let loose and President Buhari has maintained a conspiratorial silence and deliberately feigning ignorance over the democratic gangsterism that has dominated Benue Assembly at present.
This is to alert the international community and Nigerians that this democracy is seriously under threat by agents of darkness who are desperately trying to arm-twist the Benue people against their will to illegally undermine the legitimacy of the properly constituted democratically elected government in Benue state.
“This conspiracy to undermine the legitimacy of the properly constituted authority in Benue with the full manipulation of the Nigeria Police is not only condemnable, but smacks of political barbarism and hooliganism under a government that preaches anti-corruption as its selling point.
It is ridiculous, laughable, ribaldrous and utterly reprehensible to observe that the Presidency has maintained less than noble silence as Benue fragile peace is being threatened by acts of omission and commission by the Police and other security agencies.”

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