By Friday Idachaba.
Kogi State House-of Assembly building.
Seventeen members of Kogi House of Assembly have impeached four Principal Officers of the House and suspended three over alleged Gross Misconduct.
The impeachment and suspension took place on the floor of the House at an emergency sitting on Friday, following the adoption of a motion by the 17 members, read by Hon. Enema Paul (APC-Dekina II).
The motion, among other allegations, accused the four former Principal Officers of the 25-member House of gross Misconduct as it called for their immediate impeachment and replacement.
The motion, seconded by Hon. Ibrahim Usman (APC-Adavi) named the impeached Principal Officers as Hon. Ahmed Mohammed, Deputy Speaker; Bello Hassan Abdullahi, Majority Leader; Ndako Idris, Deputy Majority Leader and Edoko Moses Ododo, Deputy Chief Whip.
Calling for their immediate replacement, Enema Paul held that the House could not exist in vacuum, hence the need for their immediate replacement,pending the outcome of investigations into their alleged misdemeanor.
“We, the undersigned honourable members of the Kogi State House of Assembly do hereby resolve to impeach the following Principal Officers.
“We also resolved to replace the impeached Principal Officers with the following members: Hon. Rabiu Momoh Alfa, Deputy Speaker; Hon. Bajeh Mukhtar, Majority Leader; Hon. Umar Tenimu Isa, Deputy Majority Leader and Hon. Enema Paul, Deputy Chief Whip.
“In view of the above allegation of gross misconduct of the impeached principal officers, we further resolved to suspend the following members until further notice, pending the outcome of investigation of the allegations levelled against them”, he said.
The suspended members include the impeached Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Mohammed; Bello Hassan Abdullahi, Majority Leader and Edoko Moses Ododo, Deputy Chief Whip while Ndako Idris, Deputy Majority Leader becomes floor member.
Ruling on the motion, the Speaker, Prince Matthew Kolawole, put the question on whether the 17 members actually signed the document and they affirmed their position.
Kolawole also directed Clerk of the House to call out the new principal officers and there after inaugurated them,following majority voice votes in their favour.
The House on Friday, also dissolved the Standing Committees and constituted new ones to upscale performance of their oversight responsibilities in the remaining lifespan of the 7th Assembly in the state.
Our Correspondent reports that the exercise was conducted under tight security.
