Impeachment: Edo Assembly directs CJ to raise panel against dep gov
The Edo State House of Assembly has directed the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Daniel Okungbowa, to set up a seven-man committee to investigate the allegations of gross misconduct against the state deputy governor, Comrade Philip Shaibu.
Daily Trust reports that the directive followed the resolution passed by the house during plenary, where 19 out of the 24 members voted in favour of the resolution.
The house speaker, Blessing Agbebaku, had earlier informed the house that the sevenday ultimatum given to the deputy governor to respond to the impeachment notice served on him had expired.
According to him, the impeachment notice was earlier served on the deputy governor on March 6, but due to alleged evasion of service, the house, however, ordered substituted service.
He said the substituted services were published in the state-owned newspapers, the Observer Newspaper and the Vanguard Newspaper.
Recall that the deputy governor last week denied receiving any impeachment notice from the state house. Shaibu, in a letter addressed to the speaker by his personal assistant, Charles Olubayo, said neither the clerk nor any person sent the impeachment notice to the Deputy Governor, which he refused to acknowledge.
But the House Majority Leader, Charity Aiguobarueghan, in his motion on Tuesday, seconded by Nicholas
Asonsere, representing Ikpoba Okha constituency, moved that the House should direct the Chief Judge to set up the seven-man committee to investigate the petition against the deputy governor.
He said the motion was in line with Section 188, subsection 3 and 4, of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
According to him, the provision of Section 188, Subsection 3, which states that “whether he responds or not, the house has a duty to perform,” has already taken care of the non-response from the deputy governor.
Daily Trust reports that Shaibu and his principal, Governor Godwin Obaseki, fell out over the former’s move to succeed the governor. Shaibu is yet to react to the latest development.