August 6
The probe panel set up to look into the allegations of misconduct and misappropriation levelled against the Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-makura, by the State House of Assembly has dismissed the charges.
In the Tuesday sitting of the probe panel constituted by the State Chief Judge on the request of 20 lawmakers of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who were pushing the impeachment, the members of the panel set aside the allegations.
After the panel’s decision, an elated Governor Al-makura described the ruling as “victory for democracy”, but reiterated that he was ready at any time to defend his innocence.
There was wild jubilation in Lafia after the ruling, as huge crowd of the governor’s supporters throng the streets, welcoming the decision.
The governor said he had been vindicated by the panel’s decision.
“Those who raised the allegations against me could not come forward to prove or substantiate the it,” the governor said, referring to the PDP lawmakers.
The state House of Assembly had on July 14, through a resolution, moved for the impeachment of Governor Al-makura over a 16-count charge of misconduct and breach of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and unanimously asked the State Chief Judge to set up a panel to look into the allegations.
However, after the State’s Chief Judge set up the panel as requested, the PDP members insisted that the panel should be disband.
The 20 lawmakers at a sitting in a hotel at Karu Local Government Area, agreed to a resolution to request that the Chief Judge should disband the panel, saying they have no faith in its membership.
They were absent from the Monday sitting of the probe panel held at the Ministry for Local Government, located along Shendam Road.
Also at the sitting on Tuesday, the lawmakers pushing for Al-makura’s impeachment, represented by a team of lawyers, again protested against the panel sitting on two grounds.
They challenged the membership of Mr Mohammed Sabo Keana and Mr Mohammed Usman as members of PDP while Mr Joel Galadima as public office holder, running contrary to section 188 (5) of the constitution.
The counsel to the lawmakers insisted that the constitutional provisions and requirement must be followed by the State Chief Judge in the appointment of panel members and procedure for the panel sitting.
Governor Al-makura through his counsel, Mr Nnoruka Udechuckwu, however, disagreed with the lawyers representing the lawmakers.
I am not a fan of football game in the real sense of fanship but I know enough of the game to know that an own goal by a player is depressing, lonely and even funny situation that that player can find himself in.
Whoever is unfortunate to find himself in such a situation rue the time he committed such self inflicted infamy for the rest of his career and indeed draw a feeling of either indignation, pity or both.
For such a player, center may never hold again and indeed things have fallen apart for him.
Impeaching a Governor is not a football game; it is much more than that. It is a Constitutional matter. It is a process fraught with series of steps that must be religiously followed.
And anything short of these portends problems for the final goal of the process and could even lead to the table turning, making the hunter becoming the hunted.
When the lawmakers in Nasarawa state hurriedly convened to save the state Governor a quit notice(impeachment notice) not a few Nigerians knew that the process was in bad faith and not born out of a genuine desire on the part of the lawmekers to do their statutory jobs.
Close watchers of the state politics were aware of the running battle the Governor had been having with the lawmakers before it culminated into the impeachment process.
Perhaps, it is in order to remind or informed the uninformed that the state, from the onset, is composed of 20 PDP and 4 APC members and thus far, the APC state government has not been able to win any PDP member House over to his party.
Due to this composition the Governor had been ruling literally under constant intimation, threat and blackmail by the House. Perhaps, worthy of mention here too, is that since the journey begun, the Governor has been threatened with impeachment for about eight times before now.
This attitude of the House towards the Governor is exercabated by the facts that some of the Governor's action are clearly against the interests of the House members.
One of these, and which is the chief among many, is the uncompromising stance of the Governor against the long standing tradition of giving the House members some money, in millions of Naira, in the name of "Constituency allowance."
The Governor made it very clear that in as much as he would seriously want to be friends with the House, as a leader of the state, he must take a stand on whether he wants to deliver on infrastructural development or continue on the already established " stomach infrastructure."
He said as the state that receives the least federally allocated revenue, whoever gets the opportunity of supervising the affairs of the state must take a stand. He reasoned that nobody can embraced the two. And chose the former.
His choice, no doubt, reshuffled so many long established tradition. Not only was the interest of the House was ruffled, even the so-called elders of the state who had constituted themselves into the lord of the manor of the state, refusing any talk about infrastructural development but championing of "stomach infrastructure."
For this people, the Governor has failed even if he constructs an access road into his house as long as not into his pocket.
Conscious of these facts on the state and its governance, well-meaning state indigenes and standings in the state quickly rose to interfere and broker an amicable resolution to what clearly promises to be an ill wind that would nobody anybody good.
These people include all the first class and even the classless Chiefs of the state, notable politicians, academics, youths, and every other stakeholder you can think about. This was because, right from the onset, it clear that the missive of the House was anything but noble and in the interest of the state.
But, like a Dog destined to miss his way and refused to hear its master's whistle, the lawmakers refused all entreaties from these people to sheath their swords.
While the youths showed their displeasure through street but peaceful protests,others who are too elderly to take that course resulted to writing open letter in the Media and granting interviews to reach out to this vexed lawmakers who had by now relocated to Abuja.
Some accounts have it that the state's Rulers hierarchy led by the Emir of Lafia left their palaces for three days to meet with lawmakers in Abuja but were refused audience.
So, it seemed nothing could placate them and nothing could stop them from going through with missive; not even a meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan who was reportedly said to have appealed to them to back down.
But, the entire colour of the impeachment waters changed when the Speaker of the House eventually directed the Chief of Judge (CJ)of the state to constitute and investigative panel to investigate the Governor. After two days foot dragging, hoping that there would be a change of mind, the CJ set up the panel on a Friday.
But, a curious enough and days after, the House came out to call for the dissolution of the Panel they directed for its constitution in the first place.
But questions arises whether the House have the constitutional basis to so do or even the CJ who derives his powers to set up the panel now has the Constitutional backing to dissolve the panel.
This is because while S. 188 (5) empowered the CJ to perform the function of the empanelling Seven persons who, in his option, are of questionable characters, no section of the 1999 Constitution of the FRN (as amended) gives the House the powers to call for the dissolution of the panel. And indeed, no constitutional provision empowering the CJ to dissolve the panel he set up in the first place.
In other word, the panel, after being dully set up, assumed a life of its own and it is only a competent Court of Law that can bring that life to an end. Nothing short of this is a complete ultra constitutional measures that cannot stand any judicial test.
And regarding the misgivings about the composition of the panel of people they referred to as unfit for such assignment, the House must know that it is no longer within its purview to raise such question because their powers over the entire process ended when the Speaker, exercising his Powers provided in S.188 (5) of the Constitution.
July 31, 2014,
The impeachment of Al-makura is taking a new turn. AfricanOrbit was wrong in our assessment that APC had no response to Jonathan's acute asphyxiation of the spinal cord of the party. APC has rendered the uninformed state lawmakers powerless as the governor will be found not guilty on all counts. A supreme Court Judge has weighed in and the populace has made the state uncomfortable for the lawmakers. The lawmakers have relocated out of the state capital out of fears for their lives. The heat is seriously on them.
Meanwhile, governor Tanko Al-makura describes Wednesday’s sitting of the 20 PDP lawmakers in Karu, where the resolution was taken, directing the State’s Chief Judge to re-constitute the probe panel, as legislative insanity.
Mister Al-Makura while speaking through his senior special assistant on public affairs, accused the lawmakers of deliberating and deciding on a matter that is competently, before the State’s Chief judge, as the resolution amounts to nothing but illegality and runs contrary to subsisting Supreme court’s decision.
The 20 PDP lawmakers have abandoned the assembly complex following mass protest in support of the governor, hence the decision to relocate to Karu, a border town to the federal capital territory where the said resolution was passed, directing the Chief Judge to reconstitute the probe panel
We can not real predict where the pendulum shifts from here. It is very interesting.Stay tuned
July 26, 2014,
CJ names panel members. The list of members of the investigative panel has Yusuf Usman as chairman while Mohammed Keana, Joel Galadima, Abdul Usman, Samuel Chaku, Mohammed Usman, and Daniel Chaga are members.
Information filtering to AfricanOrbit has shown that Al-makura will be impeached as his office has been alocated to his deputy with understanding that he will not contest in the forthcoming elections. In addition the speaker will become the deputy governor and the deputy speaker will equally be elevated to the speakership position. The coast is now clear for the duo of Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku and Senator Solomon Ewuga, representing Nasarawa North at the Senate.The trio are from Nasarawa North axis of the state which has been angling to produce the governor of the state, since the return of democratic rule in 1999. The lawmakers were looking forward to Nyako style where both the governor and his deputy were forced out. This time, PDP wants the deputy to preside over the affairs of the state for 10 months, thus completing their tenure
July 23, 2014,
20 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers passed a motion directing the state Chief Judge to set up a seven man probe panel.
In a motion moved on Wednesday by the majority leader, Mr Godiya Akwashiki, under matters of public interest and seconded by Mr Baba Ibakwu, the lawmakers resolved that a seven-man panel be set up to probe the allegation against Governor Al-makura.
In his ruling, Speaker of the state assembly, Honourable Musa Mohammed, directed the state Chief Judge to immediately constitute a seven-man panel as resolved by members.
The resolution and subsequent directive, however, did not go down well with the four All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers who protested at the session.
The APC lawmakers and spokesperson for Governor Al-makura, Abdulhamid Kwara, reacted to the development from the assembly.
The APC had accused the ruling PDP and the presidency of fuelling the impeachment to stifle opposition, an allegation the presidency had denied.
We have now found out too that APC has no response to Jonathan's acute asphyxiation of the spinal cord of the party. Good-night APC.
July 22, 2014,
Nyako declared wanted by EFCC.
On another note, Ogun politics is getting very interesting. Osoba and Daniel are teaming up against Tinubu and Amosun. Daniel is going back to PDP and all LP structures in the state will collapse into PDP.
AfricabOrbit informed our readers that South West will return to PDP by all means as the Apex predator has directed his foot soldiers to commence activities towards that realization in earnest.
July 21 . 2014
AfricanOrbit can authoritatively state without any auota of doubts based on available information that Governor of Nassarawa will be impeached. One has to watch these sponsored men for this process speak. They look uneducated, myopic and unimformed. 16 of them under a tree in Abuja affirmatively stated their commitment to the process. Nigerians should look beyond the impeachment . The governor is gone. The irony of it was the fact that these men are making money on both sides of the divide. The governor gave them 10 million naira each last week but the Apex predator , Jonathan , gave them more and consequences to boot . Their political careers are on the line and that of the governor is the lamb for the process of advancing their careers.
The chairman, House Committee on Information of the State House of Assembly, Mr Mohammed Ibaku said the lawmakers would pursue the impeachment notice served on the governor for alleged embezzlement of funds.
It was an unusual gathering of men with a mission, with 16 lawmakers from the State House talking on the impeachment process that they had started.
Standing under a tree at a popular hotel in Abuja, the chairman, House Committee on Information, flanked by other legislators, reeled out the offences of the governor and efforts made to serve him personally with the notice of impeachment.
They asked Mr. Al-Makura to clear himself of the allegations.
The governor has denied any wrongdoing; with his party, the APC, accusing the PDP and the presidency of orchestrating the impeachment plot.
Every governor in Nigeria is guilty of all the offences levelled against the governor. The oyo state governor according to our investigation does not even remit local governmemnt' allocations at all and this informed the reason why there will be no local government elections in Oyo state .
July 18 , 2014, Tinubu confirms our fears for APC
We did state on July 8 that Tinubu will lose all his governors save Ogbeni. He has taken our revelation serious and has expressed his fears in the letter below. Please read.
The Presidency and the ruling PDP forcefully had their way in Adamawa. Governor Nyako has been impeached. Nigeria’s constitution suffers violence. Democracy has been setback.
Under the constitution, a governor can only be impeached for “gross misconduct.” For the PDP, Nyako’s crime was not the false allegations contained in the articles of impeachment. To them, his gross misconduct was leaving the reactionary PDP to join the progressive APC. His misdeed was to exercise his constitutional right of freedom of association and political expression by leaving their corrupt assemblage and joining the party that just may represent the best hope of rescuing Nigeria from its present descent into authoritarian darkness.
Perhaps, Governor Nyako’s greatest sin is his temerity to speak truth to power albeit in a courageous way. On two different occasions, he gave an unvarnished insight into the Boko Haram menace and the insecurity engulfing Northern Nigeria. At the Institute of Peace in Washington DC this year when he visited with other Northern governors, he placed the blame for the Boko Haran insurgency on the Jonathan presidency. He then followed this up with a detailed letter to the forum of the Northern governors in which he accused the Jonathan led government of genocide against the North. This rattled and unsettled the government.Repeated attempts to have Gov. Nyako withdraw his letter and apologize to the President failed. From the moment he wrote that letter, he became a marked man. The government savaged the governor through the media. This kangaroo impeachment is government’s way of punishing Nyako. The plan is to use the contents of the letter he wrote to the Northern Governors as a basis to try him for treasonable felony and eventually sentence him to life imprisonment. Nyako’s frank, if rough-edged, letter concerning the security situation apparently infuriated the monarch of Aso Villa who has become so arrogant as to believe no opposition against him is justified, thus he has the liberty to impose his brand of injustice to crush those who oppose him.
Before our eyes and under Jonathan’s watch, Nigeria gradually descends into fascism. We must all act now before it consumes us all.
In impeaching the Governor Nyako, the PDP used the constitution to abuse the constitution and the democracy it is supposed to enshrine. Governor Nyako’s impeachment must be seen completely as political move to punish his and deter others from leaving the PDP. It was a sanction imposed against political freedom and freedom of expression. It had little to do with alleged financial or other wrongdoing. A view of the alleged charges against him reveals that his purported wrongdoings revert to when he was still in the PDP, some dating back three years.
His actions were known to the House of Assembly then. While he still adhered to the PDP, there was no talk of misconduct. Upon leaving the PDP, his actions suddenly became the meat for impeachment. There is only one thing new which was not then present. The governor’s political party affiliation changed. In the PDP mind, his party change transmitted him from the list of those to be praised to the list of those to be persecuted.
He gave green light to this move and winked approvingly as his minions poured cash into the pockets of the pliable Adamawa State Assembly members who would do their bidding.
That the impeachment came on the same day that PDP governors and National Assembly members scurried to Aso Villa to endorse another term for their king is no accident. This was orchestrated to appear that all the wind is at the PDP sails and that the APC has been stalled by PDP strong-arm tactics. They want to create the impression that all is well and that the president rides high on popular acclaim. But there is a large crack in their wall.
Because they profit from and love the wreckage they have done to us, the president and his subordinates delude themselves into believing the average Nigerian also loves them for the damage they have caused. After over three months of avoiding the parents of the Chibok victims, Jonathan was shamed by the visit of a heroic teenager from another land, Pakistan’s Malala, into agreeing to meet them. However, after being shunned for months by the President’s cold indifference to their plight, the aggrieved parents refused to be party to the President’s slick public relations game. The parents shunned the man who would not meet with them when they wanted to meet him.
He only decided to meet them to gain publicity. The parents saw through his uncaring charade. They decided not to add themselves to the farce.
In the universe of his political hacks and courtiers, President Jonathan can do no wrong because his pockets are deep and seem never to run dry. For him, this is popularity and legitimacy. But if he truly wants to gauge how the people of Nigeria truly feel about him, he would seriously consider why the parents boycotted his meeting. These parents more accurately represent the mood of the nation than do all the processions of politicians who come to the Villa to lay themselves at the feet of their monarch.
He and the PDP contrived the removal of Governor Nyako from office. This is a temporary and costly victory for it reveals more and more the undemocratic heart of the man who rules over the nation. He now justifies his illegal and immoral acts by claiming that any show of dissent or opposition to him is the product of partisanship and thus not to be seriously considered. This is what all dictators tell themselves and he has become one. As such, he believes he can turn his back on the will and welfare of the people in order to attain his personal ambitions. Yet, while he may ignore the people, even he cannot make them disappear nor can he keep them for seeing him for what he is.
If he truly believes the false acclaim of his coterie and party dregs are genuine, let him stop these contrived attacks against opposition politicians. If he believes so much in himself, let the people decide things at the polls. He will not do this because he rightly fears Nigerians will do unto him what he has done unto them. When he calls unto the people, they will turn their backs to him in just reward for his sad and indifference misrule of this precious nation. Impeaching duly elected opposition politicians will not increase his popularity. These acts only undermine our democracy. The one party state and quasi-monarchy the PDP seeks are relics of the past and will not again stand in Nigeria.
That the impeachment came on the same day that PDP governors and National Assembly members scurried to Aso Villa to endorse another term for their king is no accident. This was orchestrated to appear that all the wind is at the PDP sails and that the APC has been stalled by PDP strong-arm tactics. They want to create the impression that all is well and that the president rides high on popular acclaim. But there is a large crack in their wall.
Because they profit from and love the wreckage they have done to us, the president and his subordinates delude themselves into believing the average Nigerian also loves them for the damage they have caused. After over three months of avoiding the parents of the Chibok victims, Jonathan was shamed by the visit of a heroic teenager from another land, Pakistan’s Malala, into agreeing to meet them. However, after being shunned for months by the President’s cold indifference to their plight, the aggrieved parents refused to be party to the President’s slick public relations game. The parents shunned the man who would not meet with them when they wanted to meet him.
He only decided to meet them to gain publicity. The parents saw through his uncaring charade. They decided not to add themselves to the farce.
In the universe of his political hacks and courtiers, President Jonathan can do no wrong because his pockets are deep and seem never to run dry. For him, this is popularity and legitimacy. But if he truly wants to gauge how the people of Nigeria truly feel about him, he would seriously consider why the parents boycotted his meeting. These parents more accurately represent the mood of the nation than do all the processions of politicians who come to the Villa to lay themselves at the feet of their monarch.
If he truly believes the false acclaim of his coterie and party dregs are genuine, let him stop these contrived attacks against opposition politicians. If he believes so much in himself, let the people decide things at the polls. He will not do this because he rightly fears Nigerians will do unto him what he has done unto them. When he calls unto the people, they will turn their backs to him in just reward for his sad and indifference misrule of this precious nation. Impeaching duly elected opposition politicians will not increase his popularity. These acts only undermine our democracy. The one party state and quasi-monarchy the PDP seeks are relics of the past and will not again stand in Nigeria.
