Africa
LEGAN practitioners in the Niger Delta have faulted the resolution of the peace parley brokered by President Bola Tinubu over the raging political conflict in Rivers State directing the incumbent governor, Sim Fubara to immediately withdraw all lawsuits instituted in the courts regarding the crisis.
The resolution also mandated Fubara to re-present the 2024 appropriation bill he had earlier presented to the four-member state House of Assembly to the full House. The eight-point resolution, further stated that: “The leadership of the Rivers State House of Assembly as led by the Rt. Hon. Martin Amaewhule shall be recognised alongside the 27 members who resigned from the PDP.
Read Also: Rivers people to Fubara: Don’t implement Abuja resolution, Tinubu did not sign it
But some lawyers who spoke with Saturday Vanguard have dismissed the outcome of the meeting as gross abuse of power and a slap on the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
They described the president’s role in the matter as an attempt to undermine the nation’s democracy.
President presiding over desecration of Nigeria’s constitution — Nwoko SAN
A former Akwa Ibom Attorney General, and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Uwemedimo Nwoko, said: “Why I feel very sad is that as educated as the President is, he does not feel any sense of repulsion, he does not feel any sense of shame going to preside over the desecration of the constitution of Nigeria.
“It is very sad that the president would preside over the desecration of the constitution that he had taken oath to protect. It is scandalous, it is very embarrassing, it is shameful, despicable and condemnable. It is wanton abuse of the Constitution.
“In law, parties cannot sit down to agree on unconstitutionality, parties cannot negotiate illegality. They cannot enter into agreement to violate the law or the constitution. For instance, the purported return of the 27 lawmakers to the House is illegality, it is unconstitutionality, it cannot stand.
“The agreement that the governor should go and re-present the appropriation bill to the House of Assembly, when the Bill has already been passed by the House, and assented to by the governor is an illegality, it is a joke of the highest level.
“In fact, the president should disown that meeting and say that he didn’t preside over the desecration of the constitution because it is an impeachable offence against him. The 27 lawmakers that defected, by virtue of the clear provision of the constitution they had vacated their position automatically. The constitution says there’s no proviso for returning, there is no exception to the matter.
“So, having lost their seats by virtue of their defection to another political party, they have gone forever. They cannot come back unless they re-contest election. Those people are out and they are out of the Rivers State House of Assembly. They cannot return. (vanguard)
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-December 23, 2023 @ 13:35 GMT|
Tags: President Bola Tinubu
