Truckloads of armed policemen have taken over the complex of the Nasarawa State House of Assembly (NSHA), and the metropolis of Lafia, capital of Nasarawa State after lawmakers scheduled an emergency sitting to pass a resolution to petition the National Judicial Council (NJC) to remove the state Chief Judge, Justice Suleiman Dikko over allegations of misconduct. Also, angry youths, this morning, stormed into the complex of the assembly and forced out the Clerk, Mr. Ego Mai-Keffi and staffs of the assembly, and went after one of them, who happened to be an aide to a member representing Nasarawa-Eggon East, Mohammed Muluku. Eye witnesses said the angry youths hailed down the legislative aide, and forced him out of the car he was driving, and set the car ablaze at Akruba, at the outskirt of Lafia along Shendam Road. Assembly sources said that the Clerk was early at the complex this morning, to make preparations for an emergency sitting after he received a call from members late last night, directing him to do so. The sources said the 20 PDP members, who have been staying in Abuja, since July 14 when they passed an impeachment motion against Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura attempted to return to Lafia for another emergency session during which they planned to raise allegations of misconduct against the CJ, and to resolve to write a petition to the NJC, asking the judicial regulatory body to fire the CJ. It was learnt that members are not comfortable with the composition of Seven-man panel set up and inaugurated by the CJ, to investigate allegations of gross misconduct and misappropriation of funds, leveled against Al-Makura in the 16-count charges contained in the impeachment notice signed by 20 of the 24 members of the House. [eap_ad_2] But it was learnt that members had to put off the sitting in Lafia, after all, because the police turned down their request to give them protection from Abuja, to Lafia, and back. The members were said to have resolved to leave Abuja, to Ado, headquarters of Karu Local Government Area, at the gateway to Abuja, to sit there, after they could not get the cooperation of the police. But the council chairman, Mr. Godwin Chindo told our correspondent none of the members contacted him at press time. This is coming barely five days after the CJ inaugurated the probe panel following a motion directing him to do. Members had sat during an emergency session, on Tuesday, last week, to pass the motion, after they had published the impeachment notice against Al-Makura in the newspapers. The House, on July 14 reconvened from an ongoing recess at an emergency session, and passed a motion of impeachment, alleging various breaches of the provisions of the constitution against Al-Makura, including misappropriation of funds from 2011 and 2014, as well as alleged gross misconduct and abuse of office processes. 20 of the 24 lawmakers, all of them of the PDP, signed the impeachment notice, containing 16-count charges, which copy is yet to be made public.
The lawmakers also passed a motion for the House to do substituted service on the governor if he could not be reached for service by the clerk who was so directed after the speaker, Musa Ahmed Mohammed ruled on the House proceedings which lasted about 12 minutes.
Sources said if the session held as planned, members would have also included as part of the resolution, the need for the NJC to direct a new judge to dissolve the panel, and to constitute a new one. (Daily Trust)[eap_ad_3]