Anambra Assembly okays July 10 as public holiday
From Chuks Collins, Onitsha
BARELY three weeks to the first anniversary of the July 10, 2003 botched abduction and removal of Anambra State Governor Chris Ngige from office, the State House of Assembly has passed a motion declaring the date a yearly public holiday in the state.
The motion, sponsored by the majority leader representing Ekwusigo constituency, Mr. Humphrey Nsofor (PDP), received wide support and loud shouts of approval from other lawmakers, including non-PDP members.
According to the motion, July 10, now known and referred to as "Liberation Day In Anambra State," was so christened by the House as a day when the state charted a new course for itself from the ruins of the past.
In his remarks during presentation of the motion, Nsofor described July 10, 2003 as a remarkable day in the political history of contemporary Anambra State in particular and the nation in general, hence it should be specially remembered.
In a chat with reporters after the motion sailed through, Ben-Chuks Nwosu (PDP, Nnewi North 1) noted that after thorough soul-searching, the members discovered that there were no records of the receipt of the "resignation letter" of the governor on which the House erroneously acted on that July 10, 2003.
He stated that the spurious letter did not follow laid down procedures and channels of communication to the House. He added that it was for that reason that the House repudiated, and expunged all actions associated with the letter.
Nwosu pointed also that they were forced unduly to accept and act on the letter, stressing that even the content of the letter gave out its hollowness and fraudulent intentions. "It ended with a word of thanks for the executive council, which was never in existence then, how bizarre!" he observed.
The House later passed a bill amending its actions and deliberations that had to do with the alleged resignation of the governor, emphasising that the governor did not resign as purported.
The incident has so far claimed several casualties, among whom are the then Speaker of the House, Mrs. Eucharia Azodo (PDP, Aguata I), and the then Deputy Governor, Dr. Okey Udeh, who quickly on the fateful day, declared himself the "new governor to avoid a vacuum."
Both Azodo and Udeh were impeached, while Azodo's membership was nullified by the election petition tribunal in the state.
Also, the entire executive of the PDP in the state was sacked by the party's national chairman, along with some named "arrow-heads" in the abduction saga led by Chief Chris Uba.
The governor has been engaged in a running battle with the members of the group ever since.
Currently, the party's national secretariat which is trying for the umpteenth time to broker lasting peace between Ngige and the Uba group, has fixed another meeting for this weekend.
The state government, however, is yet to make public its schedule of events to celebrate the July 10 Liberation day.
The Guardian gathered that constituting communities, organised groups and market unions, including prominent indigenes within and outside the state are being mobilised to participate in the event.
