FREEPRESS — Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has sought middle
ground with the State House of Assembly members who were up in arms
against him over who is constitutional empowered to dissolve the local
council.
Prior to the expiration of the local government three years tenure on
the 21st of April, the house of assembly moved a motion, directing the
18 local council chairmen to prepare their handing over notes.
The move by the assembly members angered the governor who has been
used to ridding roughshod over the members since the governor’s
political party mustered the majority in the house.
Governor Oshiomhole fiercely wrote the state assembly last week,
demanding that they desist from interfering in executive functions.
Reading the governor’s letter on the floor of the house, Hon. Kabiru
Ajoto, representing Akoko-Edo Constituency insisted that the house was
right, saying the governor was misled by the Attorney General and
Commissioner for Justice.
Following the lack of truce between the executive and the legislative
arms, the house gave an order summoning the AG, Hon. Henry Idaghagbon
to appear in the house within one week.
The crisis between the two arms of government attracted the attention
of the Labour Party national secretary and legal luminary Comrade
Julius Abure. Comrade Julius chided the governor and the members,
saying both arms have abandoned their call to duty.
“It is shameful that the house of assembly that ought to have
checkmated the illegality, banality and excesses of the governor by
ensuring that local government election is conducted before the
expiration of their tenure only came up to remind the council chairmen
and councillors that their tenures have expired. What is happening in
Edo state can not be said to be democratic or good governance,” he
said.
Comrade Abure queries: “Why should the two arms of government engage
in a fruitless fight when there is hunger and anger in the land, no
electricity, no fuel to power the generators, prices of goods in the
market have skyrocketed, school fees in the state’s owned tertiary
institutions increased above 200 percent?”
Sources in Edo Government House revealed to FREEPRESS that in a bid to
douse the impasse, the governor held a meeting with the house of
assembly members last weekend, soliciting their understanding and
cooperation. The house members, it was learned, pointedly told the
governor that he has been ‘eating alone’, an allegation that the
governor denied.
The governor was said to have told the house members that the dwindled
allocation which affected all the states of the federation also
affected the largesse to the state house of assembly. A member of the
state assembly (name withheld) told the governor that they were aware
that $75 million loan from foreign financial institution, running into
several billions of naira has been accessed and is being squandered
recklessly. The house members rejected the claims that the state is
broke.
It was learned that before the meeting came to a close that the
governor promised the house members brown new exotic Honda car/Jeep
each to be delivered this weekend.
Meanwhile, sources at the Benin airport informed us that the
jet-loving governor last week continued his gallivanting around in a
private jet belonging to Access Bank which handled the $75m deal.
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