The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly

  • My security vote is to protect me from hoodlums – Edo Speaker

    My security vote is to protect me from hoodlums – Edo Speaker

    Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Hon Adjoto Kabiru, on Thursday said the security vote meant for his office was to ensure that he is not taken away like a chicken by hoodlums.

    Hon Adjoto who dismissed allegations that the House of Assembly got huge sums as security vote explained that only the office of Mr. Speaker is entitled to security vote.

    Speaking at an interactive session with Journalists in Benin City, the Edo Speaker said he used to security vote to take care of security personnel attached to his office.

    Adjoto who emerged Speaker in August said he would not be a dictator but provide leadership in consultation with other lawmakers.

    His words, “On the issue of security vote, Edo State House of Assembly does not have security vote as an institution and arm of government. It is only Mr. Speaker that has security vote that is why Mr Speaker is the number three in the state.

    “And if he is taken away like a chicken on the street, many people will then say did he not have security men around him?

    “So, I use the security vote to take care of the security men protecting Mr. Speaker in order for kidnappers and men of the underworld not to steal or whisking away or harming him.

    “In the course of discharging my duty as Mr. Speaker by moving from one community to another or criss-crossing the country, do you want me to go alone? No. So, some armed security men must go with me. And where do I pay them from? It is from Mr. Speaker security vote.

    “I will humble myself; see leadership as a collective enterprise. It is only when I am seeing myself as the man who knows it all, that is when I will fail as Speaker but if I see leadership as collective enterprise, I think that is when all the other 23 members will see me and respect me and to continue to see me as their Speaker.

    ” I will not be a dictator, I will not take a decision without consultation, I will see myself as servant leader and not superior to any of them”, he said

     

  • Lawyer urges court to commit Edo Speaker to prison

    Lawyer urges court to commit Edo Speaker to prison

    A Benin based lawyer, Barr.  Ikhide Ehighelua, has asked a Federal High Court in Benin City to commit Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Hon Justin Okonoboh to prison custody until they purge themselves of contempt by complying with the orders of the Court of Appeal.

    Barr. Ikhide in motion on notice filed before the court said Speaker Okonoboh violated the court order by not swearing-in his client, Hon Godwin Adenomo, as a member of the State House of Assembly after the Court of Appeal declared Adenomo winner of the party primaries.

    The Court of Appeal had in February sacked Hon Sunday Aghedo and ordered Adenomo to be sworn-in as a member of the Assembly representing Ovia South West constituency.

    Ikhide told newsmen that the judgement which sacked Hon. Sunday Aghedo from the Assembly has not been reserved or set aside.

    He said it was worrisome that months after his client got  judgement from the appeal court, the Speaker refused to comply even when there was no order staying the execution or enforcement of the judgment of the appellate court.

    Ikhide noted that the Speaker has been served with the judgement and a copy of Certificate of Return issued to his client.

    Hon.  Godwin Adenomo by INEC,  the leadership of the House remained adamant hence the  need to commence a  committal process against the speaker and the clerk of the house.which will see them go to prison if they are found wanting.

    According to the lawyer, “The enrolled orders of the court have been served on the Speaker and the clerk respectively of the Edo State House of Assembly and they have failed and deliberately refused to comply with the orders of the court.

    “It is fit and proper in the circumstances to commit them to prison custody until they purge themselves of contempt by complying with the orders of the court.

    “Therefore, the judgement which sacked Aghedo from the house is a valid and subsisting judgement.  Until the judgement is set aside, it must be obeyed. For Speaker and the clerk allowing Aghedo to continue to sit, the parties sought to be committed are eroding the authority of the court.

    “The issues here are founded on the rules of law, and the need for all levels of government to obey the rules of law.  This is Executive and legislative lawlessness. Ehighelua said.

    Speaker Okonoboh in his reaction said the Assembly was an institution of the rule of law and could run fowl of the law by swearing in Adenomo when the Supreme Court was yet to rule on the case.

     

  • We will resume plenary soon, says Speaker Okonoboh

    We will resume plenary soon, says Speaker Okonoboh

    Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Hon Justin Okonoboh, has said that the lawmakers would resume plenary after all technical repairs currently ongoing in the complex are completed.

    Hon Okonoboh who spoke to reporters while inspecting repair works at the generator house and hallowed chamber said public address systems in the chamber were bad.

    On the alleged plot to impeach him, Okonoboh said, “No house is complete anywhere in the world.

    ”We are 24 members from different constituencies; we cannot all speak with one voice. We all have our different opinions and views,” he said.

     

  • First Edo female Speaker steps down over zoning

    Elisabeth Ativie, the first female to emerge Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, has stepped down.

    She was made Speaker on the May 3 and was sworn-in on the May 9 after Victor Edoror was impeached over financial misappropriation.

    Ativie was asked to step down by the party leadership to pave way for a lawmaker from Edo Central senatorial district to emerge Speaker.

    This was to balance power equation in the state.

    Festus Okonoboh representing Igueben was elected Speaker.

    More details later…

     

  • Auditors to probe impeached Edo Speaker

    Auditors to probe impeached Edo Speaker

    More troubles appeared to be lurking for the impeached Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Hon Victor Edoror.

    Auditors have been invited to audit finances of the assembly from June last year when the assembly was inaugurated.

    His impeachment paved way for the only female in the House, Hon Elisabeth Ativie to be elected Speaker of the assembly.

    Edoror who is known as ‘Tiger’ was removed on Tuesday in a coup that was carefully planned by 16 lawmakers including three lawmakers from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party.

    Sources said the lawmakers ate and dined with the former Speaker the previous day without him having any inkling to their plans.

    A lawmaker that previously sided with the impeached Speaker, Hon Osaigbovo Iyoha, has pitched tent with the 16 lawmakers raising their numbers to 17.

    The new Speaker in a chat with newsmen said they discovered that several monies were paid into the account of the former Speaker.

    Ativie said the impeached speaker and his deputy, Bright Osayande, were found wanting of corrupt practices in their financial handling of the House’s affairs and that they ‘were constantly short-changing members in the almost one year legislative calendar thereby living members to their own fate.’

    According to her, “The former speaker was very corrupt. The funniest thing is that he changed the overhead of the House to suit his own ways thereby leaving his colleagues not to be taking care of properly. You journalists can also observe that lawmakers in the Edo Assembly were now living like paupers . I don’t want to go into details of his reckless spendings.”

    “One year into office, members cannot feed properly. The most annoying one is that each time members complain, that’s the POC, who are supposed to take care of members, they failed as the leader of the House because the resources were been diverted and not used for what it’s meant for.

    “The most painful one is that, he will tell us that it is the Chief Executive (Oshiomhole) that was not releasing the fund and that ignited us to be fighting the executive. This almost led to almost three months of war between the legislators and the executive.”

    “One day the governor called a meeting of party elders and the House where he told us how he has attended to twelve out of the fourteen items sent to him for consideration which was not denied by the former speaker.”

    “The moment we establish that there was cheating In the whole process, the members were angered and the more we tried to take care of this, the more revelations we got. Yesterday here, we discovered that certain monies were paid into his private account and I have told the Clerk of the House to write to the auditor general to send us auditors to audit our finances from June last year till May this year.”

    When contacted for comments, the former Deputy Speaker, Bright Osayande, said the probe does not concern him.

    He promised to call our reporter back.

    The impeached Speaker could not be reached for comments.