Court restrains Ebonyi Assembly from impeaching Elechi

An Ebonyi State High Court presided over by Justice John Igboji, Wednesday, granted an interim injunction restraining the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Mr. Chukwuma Nwazunku, Chief Whip of the Assembly, Mr. Kingsley Ikoro and the State House of Assembly from continuing with the impeachment proceeding against the State Governor, Chief Martin Elechi. The respondents were ordered not to serve the notice of impeachment on the governor until the determination of the substantive application made by the embattled governor in suit number HAB/1mc/2015. The court also restrained the State Chief Judge from constituting a panel of seven persons to investigate the allegations of improprieties leveled against the governor pending the determination of the substantive application. Justice Igboji, who made the order after hearing counsels to the governor, Chief Tagbo Ike and Miss Chioma Okoromba, further granted the applicant leave to serve the 1st to 3rd defendants application for enforcement of fundamental rights and other processes connected with the suit through the office of the Clerk of the State Assembly. He also ordered that the Chief Judge, the State Commissioner of Police and the Inspector General of Police listed as 5th and 6th defendants should be served through the O/C Legal, State CID, Abakaliki while the 7th defendant, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice of Nigeria should be served through DHL Courier Service or Red Star Courier Service. Justice Igboji, however, adjourned hearing of the substantive matter to Tuesday, March 10, 2015. In a 22-paragraph affidavit deposed to Ebele Ibegbuna in support of the motion ex-parte, she informed the court that the second respondent, Mr. Ikoro (Chief Whip) had on January 9, 2015 made a notice of impeachment containing allegations of diverse improprieties leveled against Governor Elechi as a prelude towards his removal from office as Governor of Ebonyi State. According to her, the said notice of impeachment was forwarded to the 1st Respondent (Speaker) and circulated to both electronic and print media without availing any copy to the applicant (the governor), adding that the “copy of the said notice of impeachment obtained from the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria is herein attached and marked exhibit “A”. “The 1st Respondent on receipt of exhibit “A” is enjoined by Section 188(2) (b) of the Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) to cause the said notice of impeachment to be served on the Applicant. 1st Respondent failed, neglected and/or refused to perform his constitutional duty of causing the notice of impeachment to be served on the Applicant, and rather shockingly preferred to embark on media propaganda blitz of disclosing plans to sack the Applicant from office,” she said. The deponent stated that the governor needed to be served with the notice of impeachment in order to react to same and avail to the honourable members of the State Assembly the opportunity of appreciating that the governor did not do any wrong and change their stance against him. She pointed out that “the denial of service of notice of impeachment on the Applicant has adversely impacted on his right to fair hearing and will lead to the determination of his civic right and obligation without being accorded the constitutional right of fair hearing.” Noting that there had been increased presence and deployment of policemen at the precinct of the governor’s office and abode, Government House , Abakaliki since February 28, which is indicative of likely preparedness for removal of the governor from office, the deponent said she believes that with the support of the 5th to 7th respondents, the lawmakers were bent on continuing with the impeachment proceeding without serving the governor the notice of impeachment , which he is entitled to under the constitution. “It is in the interest of justice to restrain the 1st to 3rd respondents from determining the civic right and obligation of the applicant without being heard; that unless 1st to 3rd respondents are restrained, they will go ahead with the impeachment proceedings against the applicant,” the deponent told the court. http://theadvocatengr.com/new/court-restrains-ebonyi-assembly-from-impeaching-elechi/