EDO STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY SAGA (Order 38 and Gross Misconduct) I almost wept while watching Barr Friday Ogieriakhi and Barr Ohonbamu taking on each other yesterday night on Channels, in a current affairs program known as FACE OFF. From what I saw, I am scared stiff that Edolites are likely to put up with the pains and discomfort of a divided legislative house for a very long time, going by the intensity of the hatred exhibited by these men, live yesterday. The face off was so intense that I thank God Almighty, there was no exchange of blows between these two men who represented both factions of the Edo State House of Assembly. What could have led to the swift degeneration of relationships between these two factions? Why this stalemate, that has so far defiled every appeal for calm and return to normalcy? Stalemates in all situations are nolonger fashionable in this mordern world. Even in a football match, if you are unable to Germanise your Opponent and the match ends in a stalemate, penalties are used to determine the winner! From my observations yesterday, I realised that apart from the influence of the behind the scene sponsors of this crisis, the issues at stake seemed to be centered around order 38 and Gross mis-conduct. Order 38 is the house rule that was relied upon by the Uyi Igbe faction of the EDHA to place the four PDP legislators on indefinite suspension for Gross Misconduct. Expectedly, both factions as represented by these learned men mashalled their points or actions on this order 38. I took pains to do a little research on this order 38. A close look at the table of content of order 38 shows that it is introduced by the term order in the house or committee proceedings. The main word here is order in the house. Every other thing including where one of the sub sections recommended that the house has powers to continually extend the suspension from time to time is hinged on this title ORDER IN THE HOUSE. It is meant to guarranttee orderliness in the conduct of legislative business either at plenary or at committee level. The speaker or Chairman (in the case of committee) upon drawing the attention of members present to an unpaliamentary behaviour of a member, may proceed to suspend that member upon a simple majority vote cast for that member to be suspeneded for that sitting alone. In my opinion, Order 38 did not give powers to the house to indefinatly suspend a member. It does however say that the house may decide to renew the suspension order from time to time until such a time the house is satisfied that such member has purged his or herself of such unpaliamentary behaviour. Again, let me quickly point out that even the Renewal is nothing near indifinate suspension. Order 38 did not empower the house to suspend a member for clandenstine activities. Order 38 is meant to regulate the paliamentary behaviour of members while procceedings are on going. It certainly did not empower the house to suspend a member for any vague offence called gross misconduct. In any case, when Barr Ohonbamu was asked what this unforgiveable Almighty Gross Misconduct was by the moderator of the program, his response was, the PDP legislators were engaged in clandestine activities that undermined the position and powers of Mr Speaker. How laughable!!! So that is it. That in Barr Ohonbamu and his factions opinion constitutes gross misconduct. It is shameful that this statement could be re echoed by a lawyer before the whole world. Clandestine meetings is not even an offence known in the laws of our land. Even at that , offences committed outside the floor of the house does not fall under the juristdiction of Order 38. How this so called clandestine meetings contitute an act that undermined the authority of Mr Speaker is known only to Mr Uyi Igbe, Barr Ohonbamu, and the thirteen other APC legislative members. All that matters here is that appying order 38 in this instance, is tantanmout to standing the rules especially order 38 in the head and therefore cannot stand! I pitied Barr Ohabanmu who was obviously trying all his best to justify the action of the Uyi Igbe led faction. While Barr Ogieriakhi inspite of the obviously tensed and chaotic setting of the interview was marshalling out his position point by point, Barr Ohabamus position was hinging on the fact that they were suspended. He could neither answer correctly, the nature of the so called gross misconduct nor was he able to tell the concerned public where they derived the powers upon which these four legislators were punished by suspending them. However, none of them was able to tell the viewing audience, the effect this stalemate has on the public as their answers were anchored on their obstinate possitions. I sincerely think that though members of the public seem to be at the receiving end of this lingering imbroglio, very valuable political lessons have been learnt by the public. I do not think we can ever have a repeat of this show of political intolerance in the next Assembly. The crisis has placed activities of the Edo State House of Assembly under intensed public scrutiny. The Edo State public has been so informed, that they can now know their left from their right politically. It will soon get to the point where members of the public will engage the legislature in series of litigations should any act of illegality be committed by the house. That to me, is a very vital political lesson. In all of this, I peronally hold the Judiciary responsible for prolonging the EDHA crisis. The conspiratorial silence of the Judiciary over series of controversies they co-authored gives serious sign for concern. I am at loss why the Judiciary cannot expedite action on a matter that has put the economic and political lives of the ordinary man in the street in serious jeopady. They seem to have forgotten that they are an arm of Government. Should they fail in their responsibility, then it is safe to conclude that an important arm of Governance has failed. Why will a high court judge entertain a matter that is already before another high court judge? The PDP legislators were already before a Federal High Court when the APC legislators approached Justice Eboreime in another high court to procure a controversial restraining order. Why will a high court judge issue a restraining order in a sensitive issue like this and even barring a man from returning to the house he left in the morning leaving behind his wife and children and adjourn that matter for as long as two weeks? Why has the court of appeal refused to expediate action in hearing the appeal filed by the PDP legislators and finally lay this matter to rest? Apart from being judges, their Lordships are not just an important arm of Government, but an integral part of the society. Even if being reclusive as a result of their positions as judges, they are not blind neither are they deaf to what is going on in the society. They even listen to news and as such observe and see what is happening around them. Their continous silence or inaction over a purlly constitutional matter like this is nothing but Judicial Wickedness. In Barr Ohonbamus opinion, all court orders are to be obeyed weather wrong or not. I agree! But what happens when a man goes on an appeal? Controversial Justice Eboreime must be biting her fingers in regret for allowing herself to be caught up in this crisis. Her court is very close to the Anthony Enahoros complex; a very vantage position for her deal with issues concerning her conscience and her God. Our judges must be very careful in cases involving the political class. The intrigues involved in politics is too dirty for the Judiciary to allow itself to rubbished with. To Barr Ohonbamu, the suspended legislators should continue to be judiciarily estranged from their families because of a lapsed court injunction. They should also continue to refrain from doing the jobs they were sent to do by their constituents. Haba Bros Ohonbamu, this thing no go work na, dairis Godooo. A judge should be seen to give orders that are obeyable and not the other way round. You cannot sue a labourer for libel and expect him to pay four million naira as damages! Where will he get that kind of money from? The bitter and obvious truth is, that order cannot be obeyed. The Nigerian constitution envisaged this kind of deadlock such as we are withnessing in the EDHA saga and that is why, the judiciary was saddled with the responsibility of intepreting the law if there is conflict and mis intepretation of political issues such as this. The Edo State judiciary must therefore quickly wake up from its deep sleep and slumber and be alive to its responsiblities , duties and functions. In a responsible country where things work, this issue would have been dealt with within two weeks, at least at the high court level. The constitutional confusion between Mr Al Core and Mr George Bush after the United States Presidential election sometime ago, was dealt with by the United States Supreme Court within one week because of the political importance and implication of the case. I however, advise the APC legislators to be patient with the Judiciary and allow the appeal court deal with this matter once and for all. After all Justice Eboreime has adjourned the case sinedie (indefinately) until all issues raised in the appeal (including the so called restraining order) is dealtwith by the appellate court. It is not in their power to enforce court orders. That somebody refuses to obey a court order is not an excuse to engage yourself in illegalities and resort to self help. The relocation of plenary to Osadebe Avenue is legally and moraly wrong and must be so clearly stated. The after thought deroofing of Anthony Enahoros House is not just illegal, but a democratic abomination both in the sight of Man and God. It is alien to the sustenance of democracy and good Governance any where in the world. It is a laughable abberration, that must be condenmed by all sincere minds and therefore, must be quickly reversed. What is going on in Osadebe Avenue under the guise of plenary could at best be described as a meeting in the Governors bedroom and whatever business or resolutions that comes from there are not known in law. Renovations of legislative buildings are done when legislators are on recess. Should the renovation be urgent as they have been adducing, in self defence, the house takes a short break for instances like that. I cannot imagine how it will look like should the National Assembly move their plenary to Aso Rock or Governor Oshiomole tempriorily relocates the seat of Governor to the Anthony Enahoro Complex for absurd reasons like renovation. It is a political miscalculation by the Uyi Igbe led faction which may have very dire political consequences now or in the nearest future. They just may have lost the moral right to return to the complex for plenary. Should the court so rule that the sitting of the PDP members is legal as against the arrangement currently going on in Government house, then they are finished; irrespective of the on going commedy of summoning commissioners to this rival but illegal plenary in Government house. Another area I must not fail to quickly express my opinion on this lingering crisis, is the role of fear and suspicion. Cowards they say, die many times before their deaths. This crisis may not be unconnected with the simple fear that should the PDP be allowed to secure majority in the house, the office of Governor Oshiomole, Mr Speaker and the Majority leader will be on Shaking grounds. While not holding brief for the PDP legislators, I think they know the implication of removing a State Governor in a complex State like Edo. While they may not blink an eye in removing a lameduck Speaker and an overbearing Majority leader, the same cannot be said of the seat of the Governor. It just will not work and they know it. Why is Uyi Igbe attempting to deciminate the opposition if not for fear of loosing his Speakership seat? Why is he and his APC lawmakers insisting that they cannot hold plenary in the presence of the PDP legislators when they know that the matter is on appeal? Why did they run to Government house to begin an illegal plenary knowing fully well that the PDP legislators will never join them there. Why all these fears? I should expect them to get their lawyers ready to ensure Judicial victory, return to the lower Court and have these PDP rascals who are experts in committing offences known as gross misconduct as a result of holding clandestine meetings that undermines the office of Almighty MR SPEAKER punished if found wanting!. Mr Uyi Igbe and co however, knows that they will eventually lose the case even at the high court level because the Edo State High Court has already settled a similar issue in a case involving Rt Hon Zakawanu Garuba vs Edo State House of Assembly where the court interpreted this so called order 38 and went further to declare his indefinate suspension null and void. Mr Uyi Igbe, Mr Philip Shuaibu and majority of these legislators on both sides were members of that particular house. The court reaffirmed the judgement of the National Industrial court that a legislator cannot be suspended for more than one sitting. The basic truth is that; they just wanted to punish these PDP legislators for defecting and attempt to deceiptfully declare their seats vacant through the backdoor by way of indefinate suspension. Their mischievious calculation was to engage them in legal battle that will witness the mother of all legal delays by way of frivolous applications, motions and objections that will be argued and contested up to the Supreme court on each application. Meanwhile their legislative ternures ends in six months time. General election is seven months away (February 14th). This is the real issue and not any frivolous offence of Gross Misconduct of God knows what; that undermined the status of Mr Speaker, committed while holding clandestine or Secret meetings. I owe it as a matter of goodwill to Edo State, my good conscience and above all my to my God to say the truth and nothing only but the truth. I expect all men and women of goodwill and indeed all true lovers of democracy to add their voices demanding an end to this stage managed crisis. The greatest truth is honesty, and the greatest falsehood is dishonesty. May we never be dishonest in our entire lifes. Finally, I sincerly beg the Judiciary to quickly adjudicate on this issue and save Edo State from the needless nightmares, these political manipulators are subjecting her citizens to. God bless Edo State!!! ....OMOKHUDU OJEABUO ODION( Former Edo North Senatorial Chairman, Defunct ANPP)
Posted on: Sat, 12 Jul 2014 13:51:50 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015