Immediate past Minister of State for Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye has frown at the way and manner impeachment has been turned to an instrument of harassment and settlement of political scores by the legislative arm of government in the country, calling on the Chief
Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mahmud Muhammad to prevail upon Chief Judges (CJ) of the States to stop aiding illegal impeachments.
Adeyeye, who was reacting to the failed attempt by the All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers in the Ekiti State House of Assembly to impeach the State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, noted that in a decent society where everyone was sure that the Chief Judge of
the State would not participate in an impeachment process in which due process of the law was not followed, the lawmakers would not have been so desperate to carry out the impeachment of Governor Fayose and his deputy, Dr Kolapo Olusola in four days.
The former minister wondered how it would have been possible to get the Chief Judge of Ekiti State to hurriedly constitute the required 7-man panel, inaugurate the panel and get the panel to conclude its sitting in three days.
He said it was important that the CJN cautions Chief Judges on the need to insist that provisions of Section 188 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria are followed strictly.
The former minister, who commended the judiciary for helping to stem the tide of impeachments in the country, cited the 1962 landmark judgment in the case of Aderemi vs. Adegbenro where it was emphasised that the decisions of the House of Assembly should emanate from the Floor of the House of Assembly, and nowhere else and the Supreme
Court judgment in the case of Inakoju vs Adeleke (2007), where Justice Niki Tobi stated the intention of the Constitution was to make the House of Assembly sit physically in the building provided for that purpose.
Adeyeye said; “If not for these two landmark judgments, those who wanted Governor Fayose out at all cost, to the extent of claiming that they sat at a public school in Ado-Ekiti, would have issued a press release, claiming that they sat somewhere and impeached the governor.”
He said; “As posited by legal giant, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), in advanced democracies of the world especially the United States of America where we copied our Presidential System of government the weapon of impeachment is sparingly mentioned let alone employed
ostensibly because of its damaging potency.
“Impeachment is only employed in extreme cases where alternative routes do not just exist at all e.g. vote of censure or vote of no confidence. Thus, impeachment as a constitutional process is not designed as a weapon of political intimidation, oppression, suppression, harassment, and/or witch hunting of a president or Governor whose face the legislature does not want to behold any longer in the government house.
“Therefore, now that the APC is controlling the federal government and considering the party’s attitude to the opposition, there is urgent need by the CJN to prevail on Chief Judges of States in the country to always exercise caution in exercise their powers as provided in Section 188 (5) of the 1999 Constitution.”
