by Mobolaji E. Aluko, PhD

 

Nigeria's April 2007 elections have come, but their malodor is still with us, and will remain with us until the Election Tribunals and their accompanying Appeal process judiciously expend with the cases before them.  More particularly, only when the  electoral reforms touted by the guilty-conscience-ridden Yar 'Adua administration are implemented - and new elections called early to test them out -   will we be able to firmly put these elections a little behind us.

 

However, as all illegalities go, illegality breeds illegality, and we are beginning to witness some of that in some states, particularly with respect to the inauguration of the State Assemblies.   For example, in the hapless state of Oyo, where Lamidi Adedibu, its "garrison commander" bestrides it like a collosus, and where the Assembly is composed of PDP (16 members), ANPP (11), Action Congress, AC (four), and Labour Party, LP (one),  all the Action Congress lawmakers and one ANPP member were forcibly sidelined on Inauguration Day June 4 in Ibadan in order to ensure that they did not participate in the election of major officers of that State Assembly.   A similar incident occurred in Osogbo in Osun State,  where the Assembly is composed of PDP (15 members),  and AC (11). Four of the AC lawmakers were suddenly arrested on June 4 by SSS operatives, and the remaining seven joined them at the SSS office in sympathy.  The four arrested included one AC lawmaker that had been previously abducted last Thursday (May 31), but later released.  Only the 15 PDP members were eventually inaugurated on June 4.

 

The other one of particular concern here is my state, Ekiti State, where there are 13 Action Congress assembly men and 13 PDP assembly men.  In short, we have a recipe for legislative gridlock.

 

The case in point is how the new governor has tried to CIRCUMVENT that particular potential for gridlock in approving his Commissioners and Special Advisors.  Ostensibly taking advantage of the very short interregnum between when he (as Governor) was installed and when the new Assembly would be inaugurated (on a date to be specified by him), the said Governor Segun Oni has now presented his list of Commissioners and Special Advisers to the outgoing Assembly for its approval on June 4 rather than wait for the new Assembly. He promptly then dissolved the Old Assembly  in readiness for his  official inauguration of the new Assembly on Tuesday June 5.

 

 

 

 

But there is only a SLIGHT PROBLEM:  the 1999 Constittution.  According to Section 105 of that Constitution:

 

105. (1) A House of Assembly shall stand dissolved at the expiration of a period of four years commencing from the date of the first sitting of the House.

(2) If the Federation is at war in which the territory of Nigeria is physically involved and the President considers that it is not practicable to hold elections, the National Assembly may by resolution extend the period of four years mentioned in subsection (1) of this section from time to time but not beyond a period of six months at any one time.

(3) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the person elected as the Governor of a State shall have power to issue a proclamation for the holding of the first session of the House of Assembly of the State concerned immediately after his being sworn in, or for its dissolution as provided in this section.

The question now boils down to the following:  "When was the first sitting of the Ekiti House in 2003?"  One is sure that that crucial date is in the administrative archives of the outgone Assembly, but in looking through the newspapers archives of the Year 2003 with respect to some states' assembly inauguration, this is what can be ascertained (a partial list):

2003

Date………………………..State whose Assembly Inaugurated/had valedictory

Monday, June 2, 2003........Lagos, Oyo, Rivers, Enugu, Ekiti (valedictory), Delta (valedictory), Imo (valedictory),

Tuesday June 3, 2003…….National Assembly, Osun, Delta, Ekiti, Zamfara, Kwara (valedictory)

Wednesday June 4, 2003....Akwa Ibom, Gombe, Kwara

Also:

Friday June 6, 2003 - Fayose presents list of Commissioners to the State Assembly, which begins deliberation

Monday June 9, 2003 - List of Commissioners passed by State Assembly

 ----

But by some quirk of dates and days, this year 2007, we have:

  

2007

June 1 – is a Friday

June 2 – is a Saturday

June 3 – is a Sunday

June 4 - is a Monday

Therefore, as far as Ekiti was concerned, based on the ORDINARY READING of the Section of the Constitution that was quoted above, the 2003-2007 life of the Ekiti State Assembly terminated on Saturday June 2, and it should have had its valedictory speech on the last working day Friday June 1 to terminate it.  The new Assembly could have begun ANYTIME after June 3, depending on when the Governor chose to convene it (per the Constitution), but the first logical work-day could have been  Monday June 4.

{mosgoogle} But the PDP Governor  Segun Oni did not convene it, and rather chose to extra-constitutionality extend the life of the Old Assembly in order to achieve an illegal agenda.

If Segun Oni had submitted his Commissioners' and Advisers'  list on that Friday June 1, it should still have SMELT bad, but  it would still be legal.  Submitting the list   to an EXPIRED Assembly however is DOWNRIGHT ILLEGAL, and is actually an impeachable offence.   The argument that the life of the State Assembly terminates on the first working day AFTER the day stipulated by the Constitution does not hold, otherwise the Constitution would have made provision for it.

Finally, whether outgone or not, getting any assembly to approve a list of care-taker Local Government chairman is alien to our Constitution, and is a compoundment of the illegalities.

 

EPILOGUE

Let us not deceive each other and call a dog a monkey.  This is the FIRST time ever in Nigeria that an act like this has been perpetrated to preempt an awkward situation with this ridiculous kind of illegality,   where an outgoing assembly approves the Commissoners for an INCOMING Assembly.   Not completely recovered from the April 2007 debacle, it will once again subject our Ekiti State to national ridicule.

Segun Oni and the PDP took this desperate act in Ekiti State  because of the 13-13 deadlock in the new House of Assembly which meets for the first time  June 5, and his concern that he might have difficulties in passing his list of Commissioners.  However, that is PART of the beauty of democracy:  the art of NEGOTIATION under sometimes tight circumstances, rather than trying to cut corners, and in the process, doing something COMPLETELY illegal.  The  biblical advice is always appropriate:  "All things may be lawful, but not all things are helpful."  After all, Sole Administrator General Olurin ran Ekiti State for six months without commissioners but  one does not  think it would EVER have come to that EVEN in the deadlocked house.

Judging from the accusations on the ground already about the Ekiti and other national election robberies that are before the Tribunals, this is the classical story of the Yoruba idiom:  "a pe e l'ole, on gbe omo eran jo."  You should avoid playing around with calves when you have already been accused of being a rustler.

We sure are in for a bumpy ride in Ekiti State - and in Oyo and Osun States and possibly elsewhere - if we begin like this.

 

 

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ___

 

APPENDIX: ILLEGAL APPROVALS IN EKITI STATE BY OUT-GONE ASSEMBLY

 

ILLEGALLY APPROVED EKITI LG CARETAKER CHAIRMEN

1.  Ado - Mr. Taye Fasuba
2.  Irepodun/Ifelodun - Mr. Akomolafe Liberty
3.  Ekiti-West - Mr. Segun Asubiojo
4.  Efon - Mr. Lekan Adekanmbi.
5.  Ijero -  Mr. Bode Agbeleye
6.  Ikole -  Chief Olu Olaleye
7.  Oye -  Pastor Gbenga Akerele
8.  Ido-Osi -  Mr. Yomi Ayorinde
9.  Moba - Mr. Deji Dada
10. Ilejemeje -  Chief C. O. Alabi
11. Ikere - Mr. Adejumo Tajudeen
12. Ise/Orun -  Mr. Tunde Odusina
13.  Ekiti South West - Mrs. Dupe Ogundipe
14.  Emure - Mr. Peter Ogundoro
15.  Ekiti East -  Dr. Samuel Adeyemo
16.  Gboyin - Mr. Oba Fasanmi

ILLEGALLY-APPROVED EKITI COMMISSIONERS

1.   Mr. Gboyega Oyewole, The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice under Olurin/Ademiluyi Administrations [EKITI WEST]
2.   Mr. Tunji Adeniyi, former Managing Director of the defunct Trade Bank [IKOLE]
3.   Chief (Mrs.) Abiola Ayinmoche, former Chairman of the board of the National Universities Commission (NUC) [OYE]
4.   Mrs. Omotomilola Osunde
5.   Mr. Dare Omotosho [ISE/ORUN]
6.   Mr. Abiodun Bamiteko [MOBA]
7.   Dr. Femi Thomas
8.   Dr. Rufus Ojo Ajayi
9.   Alhaji Sanni Yaqoub Oladoro, the immediate past Permanent Secretary of the Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM)
10.   Mr. Tunji Festus Olatunde [Businessman-Baker] [GBONYIN]
11.   Michael Oluwole Afolabi, the Chief Librarian of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife.
12.   Mr. Odunayo Ategbero, Chairman of Efon Local Government [EFON]

ILLEGALLY APPROVED EKITI NON-COMMISSIONERS

1.   Chief of Staff - Segun Ilori  [IDO/OSI]
2.   Deputy Chief of Staff - Bakare Bello
3.   Secretary to State Govt. - Ambassadore Dare Bejide [EKITI SOUTH-WEST]
4.   Head of Service - Olufemi Adewunmi
5.   Special Adviser, Strategy - Ben Oguntuase [IKOLE]
6.   Special Adviser, Energy - Bisi Aje [IJERO]
7.   Personal Physician to the Governor - Dr Olufemi Ajayi [IDO-OSI]
8.   Senior Special Assistant (Public Communications) - Moses Jolayem [EKITI-WEST]i
9.   Personal Assistant - Bunmi Ojo [IDO/OSI]