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Anambra in fresh move against ex
Anambra in fresh move against
ex-Speaker
FELIX UKA,
Awka
MEMORIES
of the July 10, 2003, alleged resignation of Gov. Chris Ngige and the aftermath
came alive at the Anambra State House of Assembly yesterday as the legislature
unanimously declared vacant the seats of the former Speaker, Mrs. Eucharia Azodo
and Hon. Nelson Achukwu.
The two members had been prominent in the
said resignation drama and its follow-up for which reason they were suspended by
their colleagues close to a year now.
The Assembly was told that the duo, who
respectively represent Aguata I and Nnewi South II constituencies, had allegedly
been drawing their salaries for the one year or so they were suspended.
The Assembly also called on the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to quickly conduct elections in
the two constituencies.
The unanimous resolution of the Assembly,
declaring the seats vacant followed a motion brought before it by the Majority
Leader, Hon. Humphrey Nsofor representing Ekwusigo constituency.
The two affected legislators failed to
appear before the House to defend the allegations against them.
Nsofor who presented the motion relied on
Section 109 paragraph F, sub-section 3 of the constitution which he explained
stipulates that a member of the House has a mandatory period which he is
expected to sit in the Assembly, failing which the Speaker has the right to make
observation.
He said the Clerk of the House intimated
the Assembly of his observation that the two members had not sat in the House
for over one year, of which he (Nsofor) had no choice but to move the motion
that their seats be declared vacant.
"It is painful, but they had every
opportunity to come and represent their people, who elected them. While they
remained absent their constituents suffered setback; we have used our presence
here to attract things to our own people, so it is only fair that their seats be
declared vacant," he stated.
Supporting the motion for INEC to conduct
elections in the two affected constituencies, Hon. Peter Onwurah, representing
Anyamelum, said "they broke the oath of allegiance, though it is a painful thing
to do, we have no alternative."
He said the duo had been receiving
salaries but failed to yield to efforts to get them back to the assembly.
The motion on INEC was moved by the Deputy
Speaker, Hon. Ozo Ughamadu.
Speaker of the Assembly, Hon. Mike Balonwu,
following the unanimous decision of the members, declared that the seats for
Nnewi South II and Aguata I Constituencies had been declared vacant.
Also, the Assembly later adopted a motion
brought before it by Hon. Bona Orakwe, representing Onitsha South, wherein he
sought for setting up a juvenile remand homes in all the magisterial districts
of the state.
(south-south) of the party.
A recent meeting of the party leaders
including governors in the south-south, in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital,
ended in a stalemate over the issue of Ake as a successor to Dikibo.
At a joint press conference yesterday in
Abuja, Govs. Attah, Ibori, Igbinedion and Alamieyeseigha represented by Attah,
maintained that they firmly support the nomination of Dr. Tarila Tebepah as
replacement for the late Dikibo.
But, the Rivers State Government said,
also yesterday, that the matter has been peacefully resolved, pointing out that
such reaction lacked basis.
"I don’t think Obong Attah would have said
such a thing because the matter has long been peacefully resolved," sasid the
Rivers State Commissioneer for Information, Magnus Abe.
The governors who made their position
known through Gov. Attah, marshalled a six-point position on the matter.
They stated that the Uyo meeting could not
arrive at a consensus candidate for the position of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
national vice-chairman (South South).
According to them, as a result of this, a
firm decision was taken to step the matter down until another meeting is held.
They also said that since the decision was
taken, no meeting of the stakeholders or the governors had been called to
discuss the issues, adding that the news of the purported swearing-in of Ake as
replacement for the late Chief Dikibo came to them as a total surprise.
The four governors stressed that
Alamieyeseigha whose nominee, Dr. Tebepah, had enjoyed popular support, has
strongly protested the recognition of Ake.
Governor Attah said reports, analysis and
features in the media tend to agree that there is a problem over the issue of a
replacement for the late Dikibo, owing to the inability or unwillingness of
certain leaders to accept the majority position on the matter.
He described as deliberate falsehood and
distortion of facts of the issue in some newspapers (not in Daily Champion)
as a fall-out of the recent zonal meeting of the party held in Uyo.
Only last week, leader of the South-South
caucus of the National Assembly, Senator Victor Oyofo warned the zone’s
political leaders against allowing personal political considerations to
overwhelm the area’s collective political and development aspirations.
He said it was illogical for some of the
zone’s chief executives to stand against the choice of someone from Rivers State
to finish the term of the late Dikibo.
Chief Ake who was reportedly backed by his
state governor, Peter Odili and Chief Anthony Anenih, the acting Chairman of the
party’s Board of Trustees was last week sworn into office.
Reacting to the four governors’ position,
Rivers State Information Commissioner, Mr. Magnus Abe, said, "I don’t think
Obong Attah would have said such a thing because the matter has long been
peacefully resolved."
"I don’t think there is any cause for such
reaction, I don’t believe it," he added.
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