The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), the All Progressives Congress (APC) Governors’ Forum and eminent Nigerians condemned yesterday the impeachment of Adamawa State Governor Murtala Nyako.
NGF chairman Chibuike Amaechi, the Rivers State governor, described the act as “a sad day for democracy in the country.”
The APC governors speaking through its chairman Rochas Okorocha, said the action “is bad politics of intimidation aimed at stifling the opposition. “
He added that it could have a negative effect on the country’s fight against democracy.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Senator Bukola Saraki and second Republic Governor Balarabe Musa, also condemned the removal of the governor.
Amaechi urged Rivers people and members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to remain calm, saying by God’s grace, he would hand over to his successor on May 29 next year.
The Rivers governor, who spoke through Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, asked the Minister of State for Education, Chief Nyesom Wike; the Rivers Chairman of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Felix Obuah, and the six “desperate” lawmakers to give peace a chance in Rivers State and bear in mind that power belongs to God. He urged them to stop their “rascality” forthwith.
Semenitari said: “The Rivers State Government is assuring the people of the state that the enemies of progress will fail and all the persons plotting to impeach Governor Amaechi and their paymasters in Abuja will be disappointed, because God remains the Almighty.
“We wish to appeal to all well-meaning people in Nigeria and around the world to please call the PDP leaders to order, before they truncate the nation’s democracy. They are becoming too desperate over 2015, forgetting God.
“It is now very obvious that the members of the PDP, especially the leaders of the drowning party, have no interest in the peace and stability of Rivers State. Their evil plan will never come to pass. They are afraid, because Rivers remains an APC state and the people of the state, who have not seen any Federal Government project, will chase them away in 2015.”
The Rivers information commissioner also stated that there would be no hiding place for the six pro-Wike lawmakers, in the 32-member Assembly, while insisting that emphasis must always be placed on the rule of law and due process.
Semenitari said: “Just on June 19, shortly after Governor Amaechi was held hostage in commando style by soldiers and the Federal Government’s security agents in Odudu, Ondo State, on his way to Ekiti State, where he was to join Governor Kayode Fayemi and other leaders of the APC, for the mega rally before the June 21 election, we informed Rivers people about the move to impeach Governor Amaechi earlier in the day. The six Rivers lawmakers and their sponsors are not relenting, not minding the illegality and unconstitutionality of their proposed action.
“We wish that the PDP-led Federal Government will address the spate of insecurity in Nigeria, especially the embarrassing Boko Haram menace and suicide bombings, with as much fervor and vigour as it has deployed in plotting against and witch-hunting its political opponents, at a time the over 200 innocent Chibok girls, kidnapped since April 15, are still in captivity.”
Okorocha, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on media, Mr. Sam Onwuemeodo, regretted that despite series of discussions and dialogue with members of the Adamawa State House of Assembly to have a rethink, they went ahead with the plot.
“ The impeachment won’t encourage other nations of the world willing to help us come out of our security problem to take us serious. To say the least, the impeachment was not the best of actions this time”, the statement said.
The Imo Governor added that “What the nation needs most this time should be ideas, unity of purpose and patriotism to deal decisively with the lingering security problems threatening our nationhood and not actions that would further inject bad blood among the leaders of this country and the citizenry in general.
“The impeachment of the Adamawa State Governor and similar impeachment threats against the governors of Nasarawa, Edo, Rivers and so on, could be explained as bad politics of intimidation aimed at stifling the APC as a party and threatening our nascent democracy. The impeachment has no iota of value to add to the nation’s growth and development, and even to the progress of Adamawa State”, he said.
Atiku Abubakar warned against the excessive use of power by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led Federal Government, a tendency, which he said, was not good for decent democratic practice.
In a statement by his media office in Abuja, Atiku said wielding the axe of impeachment against elected public office holders to settle scores by the PDP-led Federal Government would needlessly build up tension in the country.
The former Vice President said the reckless use of impeachment to settle scores could not have been the intention of the framers of the 1999 Constitution.
He said the frequency with which elective officials were being shot down by impeachment would destroy the whole purpose of inserting the impeachment clause in the Constitution.
He regretted that the use of impeachment to harass and humiliate perceived opponents by the PDP-led Federal Government would ultimately bastardise the spirit in which the constitution provides for the impeachment clause.
The former Vice President admonished the PDP-led Federal Government to take it easy in the way they use power, adding that the constitution was not meant to provide ammo to anybody to harass and humiliate opponents or force them out of office.
He deplored the use of financial inducements to influence the removal of perceived opponents from office. According to him, triumphalism in the suppression of opponents is a bad omen for democracy.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Ecology and Environment, Senator Saraki, described the impeachment as unfortunate.
He said: “It is very unfortunate and I think we are seven months to the end of the tenure. We all need to look at the bigger picture, look at the stability of our democracy.
“After Adamawa, I think Nasarawa State governor is being served with impeachment notice and three other states are going to be served.
“The bigger issue in this country now is the issue of security, and poverty. Some of the issues raised against the Adamawa State Governor can also apply anywhere and we need to be mature with our democracy.
“The issue of impeachment should not be our priority at this stage and those of us that love this country will really need to talk to ourselves and be more concerned with the insecurity before us instead of dissipating our energy on issues that will divide us by overheating the polity and creating problems for ourselves.
“We should talk about how to improve security and ensure better living conditions of our people. Those who are beating the drums now should know that it will come back to them.”
Balarabe Musa described the impeachment of as a desperate act by the PDP
He said he was not surprised by the news of the impeachment, saying, he had observed that the PDP was desperate to reduce the All Progressive Congress (APC) to a loyal opposition party.
According to the elder statesman, who himself was impeached in the Second Republic: “I am not surprised because, the PDP is desperate to reduce the APC to a mere loyal opposition and they have found Adamawa as a soft spot, following the defection of House of Assembly members to PDP.
“Secondly, the fight among the elite of Adamawa State for power had made it very easy for the PDP to succeed in its plan,” he said.
The “PDP is mindless, insensitive and practising do or die politics, which is very dangerous for the development of Nigeria’s democracy.”
I have my doubts if due processes were followed. I think the impeachment was not an act of the Adamawa State House of Assembly. It appears Governor Nyako is being punished for holding views considered subversive and against the powers that be.
“To remove a governor is not a small business. It is a serious constitutional duty that must be carried out in accordance with due processes and after affording the governor adequate time and opportunity to defend himself.
The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) blamed President Goodluck Jonathan of playing ‘politics of dictatorship’ by hunting opposition governors.
It advised Dr. Jonathan to follow due process.
It said: “we wish to advise President Jonathan to always adhere to the rule of law and hard core democratic tenets; for we could notice signs of dictatorship creeping into the political landscape. For instance the Maiduguri airport which was closed to pilgrims because of Boko Haram was opened for the man who nurtured the monster, what an irony.”Yesterday, it was Governor Murtala Nyako, today Tanko Almakura, tomorrow another APC governor to be impeached, so no PDP governor is corrupt?”The statement was issued by the CNPP National Publicity Secretary, Osita Okechukwu.
