by Biyi Adegoroye

Since January this year, the lawmakers appended their signatures to the document on the “Notice of Allegations of Gross Misconduct against Governor Elechi,” it was not until penultimate week they made their intention public knowledge.

If feelers from Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, are of any significance, the recent intervention of the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party in the political logjam in the state, might be a ruse after all. The peace process designed to save Governor Martins Elechi from being impeached by the state House of Assembly, may have suffered a setback after the governor obtained an injection restraining the lawmakers from carrying out the move.

Highlights of the peace meeting which had many governors of the PDP in attendance, was that Elechi should dissolve all the local government caretaker committees and the local development centres which were constituted without recourse to the legislators and revert to status quo ante. Elechi is also expected to collapse the current Labour Party structures into the PDP and promote the interest of the party on whose platform he was elected

But the governor has allegdly given his conditions, topmost of which is that the PDP should concede a senatorial slot to one of his sons who has secured the ticket of the LP for the Senate. But that seemed to have vapourised last week when Justice John Igboji of Abakaliki High Court granted an injunction restraining the Ebonyi State House of Assembly from proceeding with any impeachment processes against Chief Elechi.

The order which was at the instance of a motion ex-parte brought by Governor Elechi against the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Hon. Chukwuma Nwazunku, the Chief Whip, Hon Kingsley Ikoro on behalf of 14 other members of the Assembly and five others. Justice Igboji also restrained the Chief Judge of the State, Justice Alloy Nwankwo from constituting a panel of seven persons to investigate the allegation of improprieties leveled against Chief Elechi pending the determination of the substantive Another seeming impediment to the peace process was the protest in Abakaliki by scores of women who carried placards full of name calling capable of fanning embers of discord. They include “Burning of Ebonyi Assembly will not make (Dave) Umahi a governor,” “Ebonyi women condemn our governor’s impeachment,” “Ebonyi women say no to political violence” and “Peace is our watchword, say no to violence.”

 Impeachment notice

Since January this year, the lawmakers appended their signatures to the document on the “Notice of Allegations of Gross Misconduct against Governor Elechi,” it was not until penultimate week they made their intention public knowledge. They anchored their action on Section 188 of the Constitution, which they said was roundly violated by the governor.

The eight-point grounds of impeachment and allegations for which the governor is to defend himself are:

Unlawful appointments

That contrary to and in a breach of the express provisions of Sections 7 and 8 of the Ebonyi State Local Government Councils and Development Centres (Amendment) Law No. 001^ of 2007, Governor Martin N. Elechi appointed and inaugurated 28 persons as Coordinators of 28 Development Centres without prior screening and confirmation of each of the appointment by a simple majority of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly.

Unapproved appointees

That contrary to and in violation of the express provisions of Section 7 of the Constitution and without reference to the Ebonyi State House of Assemby Governor Martin N. Elechi appointed and inaugurated a caretaker chairman for each of the 13 local government councils of Ebonyi State. Unapproved Board composition

That contrary to and in violation of the express provisions of Sections 197 and 198 of the Constitution, Governor Martin N. Elechi appointed the chairmen and or members and directors of certain statutory bodies and companies, to wit the Ebonyi State Local Government Service Commission , Secondary Education Board , Universal Basic Education Board, State Civil Service Commission, Ebonyi Cement Company Ltd and Ebonyi Oil and Gas Development Co. Ltd, who assumed office and have since been functioning without confirmation by a resolution of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly.

N3 billion loan

That contrary to and in violation of the express provisions of the Constitution, Governor Martin N. Elechi took a N3bn loan in August 2014 from First Bank of Nigeria Plc repayable within 11 months on behalf of the Ebonyi State Government without obtain-ing the necessary consent of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly, with due payment to be completed in May, 2015.

N6 billion loan

That contrary to and in violation of the express provisions of the Constitution , Governor Martin N. Elechi took a N6 billion loan in 2013 from United Bank for Africa Plc on behalf of the Ebonyi State Government without obtaining the necessary consent of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly

Ebonyi Oil and gas shares

That the Ebonyi State Government spent N6million in incorporating the Ebonyi Oil & Gas Development Co, Ltd with two hundred million ordinary shares in the year 2013 surprisingly giving 100,000,000 controlling shares to Edon (Nig) Ltd, represented by Edward Nkwcgu, 25,000,000 shares to the governor’s son, Elechi Elechi, 25,000,000 shares to Best Southern Global, while surprisingly giving the financier, the Ebonyi State Government a minority shareholding of 50,000,000. Save the Ebonyi State Government, neither Edon nor Elechi Elechi paid for their shares and are yet directors thereof.

The Ebonyi State Govt, though being a minority shareholder, paid N30 million for technical evaluation for the acquisition of OPL 911

Contract inflation

That Edon Nig. Ltd abandoned the Ebonyi International Trade Centre, which Governor Elechi had approved its over-inflation to N2.4 billion and the sum of N790,221,833.25 was nevertheless paid to Edon between 2008 and 2012.

Notwithstanding the said abandonment, Governor Elechi went ahead to award the construction of the International Market contract to Edon Nig. Ltd at a whopping sum of N3.6billion and approved the increase of the contract sum by an additional N 1,940,599,575.25 (about 50% increase).

The following month, July 2013, Governor Elechi surreptitiously further increased the contract sum by a further additional sum of N391,204,441.00. From November 2007 to August 2012, Edon received a whopping sum of N3,934,891,025.63, yet the contract remains abysmally performed and is far from completion.

Ebonyi Cement shares

That the Ebonyi State Government spent over N86million and another N18.3million incorporating the Ebonyi Cement Co. Ltd with 250 million ordinary shares in February, 2009 surprisingly giving 175,000,000 controlling shares to Edon (Nig) Ltd, represented by Edward Nkwegu, Chief Linus Nwamba 25,000,000 shares, while surprisingly giving the financier, the Ebonyi State Government a minority shareholding of 50,000,000. Neither Edon nor Chief Nwamba paid for their shares and are yet directors thereof.

To the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Elechi, Dr. Onyekachi Eni, the whole allegations were politically motivated to embarrass the governor less than 100 days to the end of his tenure. He said government was surprised that the same lawmakers who had been with the governor all this while just woke up to level such allegations against him, adding that that informed government’s resort to a court action.

Eni stated that “the whole issue was a power tussle in which some of our peoples here in connivance with some of our illustrious sons in Abuja took the party structure from Governor Elechi, who is on the last lap of his two-year term, forcing him to move his followers to another party.”

Reacting to the demonstration in Abakaliki, Director of Media of Chief Umahi, Chief Abia Oyike, urged the governor to face his problems with the House of Assembly and desist from dragging the governorship candidate of the PDP into the current impeachment saga.

He said last week’s rally was a ruse, having been carried out “by a rented crowd of illiterate women who were totally oblivious of the issues before the state assembly. “ Oyike said Elechi does not have any mass followership as currently portrayed in the state, because “the governor does not have a proletariat background and spirit.” Oyike said the governor’s policies over the years have been anti-workers.

“He is one of the governors who have failed to implement the Basic Minimum Wage in the country. Instead, he imposed a wage regime on the people. He closed down sporting activities and banned Ebonyi Club. So he does not have that followership. He should rather go and defend himself before the House.”

As both parties move to court on Tuesday, it remains to be seen whether the court will vacate the order, leaving the governor to respond to the allegations, or the issues which have engendered a rancorous political climate in the state will be resolved by party leaders to put an end to the current dance of shame.

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Biyi Adegoroye  ‎is the Assistant Editor of New Telegraph newspaper

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.