Nyako impeached, speaker sworn in as acting gov •We are studying the situation —APC
Tribune on 16 July, 2014
THE Adamawa State House of Assembly has sacked the state governor, Admiral Murtala Nyako (retd), from office.
This came as his deputy, Bala James Ngillari, dodged impeachment, as he resigned from office.
Ngillari’s letter of resignation was read by the speaker of the assembly, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, to members, shortly before the assembly considered the report of the Buba Kaigama-led seven-man investigation panel set up to look into the allegations of gross misconduct levelled against Nyako and his deputy.
“I kindly wish to notify you of my resignation from office as deputy governor forthwith,” the letter read.
A member of the assembly, Honourable Kwamoti Laori, moved the motion for the adoption of the resignation of the deputy governor, which was seconded by Honourable Wafarninyi Theman.
The 17 members who attended the sitting unanimously approved Ngillari’s resignation, a situation that made the office of the deputy governor vacant.
The speaker, who had earlier informed the house of the receipt of the panel’s report, read out the findings, which found Nyako guilty of 16 out of the 20 allegations levelled against him.
The panel, among other things, indicted the Nyako-led administration of impunity over the non-payment of civil servants salaries.
It further found the administration culpable of running the affairs of government with “family and friends.”
The report cited the office of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), being managed by the son in-law to the governor, as being behind the fictitious N2 billion loan repayment between the office and one commercial bank in the state.
Nyako was also accused of abusing state powers by appointing one of his wives as the state chairperson of the State Action Committee on AIDS (SACA), contrary to laws.
Honourable Jerry Kumdisi, in his contribution, urged his colleagues to adopt the report.
He was supported by Honourable Laori, who also commented on the same matter, adding that the assembly had met the two-third requirements needed to adopt the report which indicted the governor.
The speaker then went over the signatures of the 18 members who signed to adopt the report, before invoking Section 189(9) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
“And with this verified 17 signatures of members of the assembly, though 18 signed, I, therefore, declare that Governor Nyako stand removed from office,” the speaker said.
But the earlier resignation of the deputy governor had created a vaccum.
Honourable Laori, however, citing Section 191(1) and (2) of the constitution, moved that the speaker be sworn in to act as governor, since both the offices of the governor and the deputy governor had become vacant.
The motion Honourable Fintiri should that act as the governor for three months, until election is conducted, was seconded by Honourable Adamu Kamale and unanimously adopted by the members.
We are studying the situation —APC
OPPOSITION All Progressives Congress (APC), on Tuesday, declined comments on the impeachment of Adamawa State governor, Murtala Nyako, by the state House of Assembly.
Nyako defected to the party from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the wake of leadership crisis in the party.
Party spokesperson, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, told the Nigerian Tribune that the party was still studying the political development in the state and would make categorical statements when the time is ripe.
He added that the evolving issues around the impeachment were still at infancy stage, adding that it was imperative to allow a bit of maturity before specific comments would be made.
It was, however, learnt that the impeachment would be challenged in court.
A party chieftain tagged the process leading to Nyako’s impeachment “illegal,” which, he was confident, would not stand in the face of law.
Chibok girls’ parents refuse to meet Jonathan
The Punch on JULY 16, 2014
Some parents of the over 200 schoolgirls abducted from Chibok, Borno State over two months ago on Tuesday shunned President Goodluck Jonathan’s invitation.
Jonathan had on Monday told a girl-child education campaigner, Malala Yousafzai, that he was ready to meet the parents.
Yousafzai, who had earlier met with some parents and some girls who escaped from their abductors , said she told Jonathan of the distraught parents’ desire to meet with the President in order to share their stories with him.
A meeting of the President with the abducted girls’ parents was therefore fixed for Tuesday by 4pm at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
But none of the parents showed up for the meeting despite the fact that the President was waiting to receive them.
Some government officials including the Minister of State, Education, Nyesom Wike; and the National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, who were billed to join the President to receive the parents later left when it became clear that they would not honour the invitation.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, later told State House correspondents that he received a telephone call indicating that the parents would not honour the invitation.
Okupe said to show the President’s readiness to receive them, some Coaster buses were sent to go and convey them to the Presidential Villa.
He said investigation revealed that the escaped girls and the parents of the abducted girls were whisked away back to Borno State from Abuja early Tuesday morning by the BringBackOurGirls campaigners.
Okupe said it had become obvious that the campaigners were being driven by politics.
He claimed that the motive behind their action was to ensure that Jonathan was discredited so that he would not be able to present himself for re-election in 2015.
Okupe, however, said that the President had directed that letters be sent to the parents, inviting them for a rescheduled meeting which may hold next week.
He said, “The meeting was scheduled for 4pm today (on Tuesday) at the instance of the request that was made by Malala and the President graciously agreed within 24 hours to meet with them (then parents.)
“But unfortunately the BringBackOurGirls leadership prevailed on the parents of the girls and stopped them from coming.
“Therefore, what happened was that they actually shunned the meeting with Mr. President because the foreign media and everybody were waiting for this meeting and since they were no longer coming and they made it expressly clear that they were no longer coming.
“It was aborted by the failure of the girls and the parents to show up, they actually shunned the meeting. The President was waiting, the NSA was waiting, top government officials were waiting to receive them for private consultation with the President as promised.”
In a statement he earlier issued in the name of the President Jonathan, Okupe had said that it appeared that the fight to get the girls back was not only a fight against insurgency, but also against a political opposition.
The statement partly read, “It is with great regret that I announce the cancellation of the meeting with 12 parents of the abducted Chibock children, as well as five of the brave girls who escaped from the terrorist organisation Boko Haram.
“ I scheduled this meeting, which was to be open to the media for coverage by Nigerian and international press, to listen to their stories and to privately brief the parents and the girls on our efforts to rescue the abducted girls.
“My priority is not politics. My priority is the return of these girls.
“Unfortunately, political forces within the Nigerian chapter of BringBackOurGirls have decided to take this opportunity to play politics with the situation and the grief of the parents and the girls. They should be ashamed of their actions.
“Those who would manipulate the victims of terrorism for their own benefit, are engaging in a similar kind of evil: psychological terrorism.”
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