Removal of Enugu dep gov senseless —Falana, Sagay

AUGUST 27, 2014 BY ENIOLA AKINKUOTU

Mr. Femi Falana

Human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, has condemned the removal of the Enugu State Deputy Governor, Mr. Sunday Onyebuchi, describing it as “senseless and childish.”

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria said impeaching the deputy governor for running a poultry at his official residence and allegedly refusing to represent the governor on two separate occasions, was hypocritical.

He wondered why the state Governor, Sullivan Chime, was not also impeached when he was accused of illegally detaining his wife for several months.

He said the seven-man panel which was set up by the chief judge at the instance of the state House of Assembly, operated illegally.

He, therefore, urged Onyebuchi to seek redress in court.

Falana said there was a need to revise the laws guiding impeachment as it was too ambiguous, giving politicians the opportunity to manipulate it.

He said, “When the governor was sick last year and travelled out of the country, he did not handover to his deputy even though the law demands that a governor most handover to his deputy if he is incapacitated or absent. Why did the lawmakers not impeach him for that? Why didn’t they impeach him for running a piggery?

“Also, the lawmakers impeached the deputy governor because the governor claimed the deputy refused to represent him at two events. Does the governor have evidence of this? The deputy governor should seek redress in court. Because the impeachment is nonsensical.”

Another Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Prof. Itse Sagay, condemned the removal of Onyebuchi, describing it as unfortunate.

He said, “The impeachment based on poultry and other ridiculous matters is dragging the country down the path of shame which the country has been going through for quite some time because of leaders who act like children. There is a clear evidence of immaturity all over the place. It is obvious that the governor does not want the man again and just decided to look for anything and then came up with the poultry idea which is so ridiculous.

“I understand from the man’s defence that because he was considering contesting as a senator and the governor did not like it, he was removed. This is the level of political intolerance that this country is going through, where people who are in office think that they are the alpha and omega and determine the finality of all things.”

http://www.punchng.com/politics/removal-of-enugu-dep-gov-senseless-falana-sagay/

Enugu govt withdraws impeached dep gov’s vehicles

on August 28, 2014   /   in News 12:56 am   /   Comments

By Tony Edike

ENUGU—Barely 24 hours after Enugu State Deputy Governor, Mr. Sunday Onyebuchi, was removed from office by the State House of Assembly, heavily armed security operatives stormed his private residence at GRA, Enugu, yesterday, to recover eight vehicles.

Five of the vehicles were those he used as his official convoy, while two others were his official cars from the previous administration.
The car officially allocated to his wife, Nneka Ada Onyebuchi, was also taken away.
His security aides were withdrawn shortly after he was impeached on Tuesday.

Chime and Onyebuchi

One of the personal aides to Onyebuchi, Mr. Onyeka Nnaji, said over 20 security operatives from  Government House, Enugu, led by the Chief Security Officer to the Governor, Mr. Fidelis Ogarabe, came to the residence to demand for keys to the vehicles.
He said the former deputy governor was not available when the CSO and his men came to the house but “when he was contacted, he directed that we should allow them take the vehicles and that we should not deny them access to the compound because he has nothing to hide.”

According to him, the vehicles removed from Onyebuchi’s residence included one Toyota Land Cruiser Sports Utility Vehicle, SUV; two Toyota Prado SUVs;  two Toyota Hilux Pilot vehicles; two Peugeot 406 cars he used during his tenure as Commissioner for Works under the Chimaroke Nnamani administration and a Nissan Tiena car belonging to Mrs. Onyebuchi.

“We are surprised by what is happening because we have never heard anywhere in this country where the official vehicle of an impeached elected public officer was recovered.
“It is strange and the former deputy governor will speak at the appropriate time,” the aide said on phone yesterday.
Efforts to speak with the ousted deputy governor on the development proved abortive as he did not pick his calls.

Meanwhile, the impeachment of the number two citizen in the state has continued to dominate discussions in public places in Enugu, even as the people are eagerly waiting to know who the governor has nominated to occupy the vacant seat of the deputy governor.
Efforts to speak with officials of the government on the development also proved abortive as those contacted declined comment.

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