October 07, (THEWILL) – This may not be the best of time for the embattled Deputy Governor of Ondo State, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, as he is making efforts to sustain his tenure in office.
He is doing everything possible within his power, especially through the use of constitutional means, to avert his removal from office by the State House of Assembly.
He has asked the Chief Judge of the state, Olusegun Odusola, to ignore the directive of the House of Assembly to set up a seven-member panel to investigate him.
The Assembly allegedly accused Aiyedatiwa of gross misconduct and threatened to remove him from office.
The deputy governor was served with the notice of allegations made by the House, but he ignored its directive to respond within seven days. Instead, he obtained an order from a Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the lawmakers from proceeding with the process of his impeachment.
But the assembly, led by Olamide Oladiji, went ahead with the proceedings despite the court order. Upon the expiration of the the seven-day ultimatum, it directed the Chief Judge to set up a panel in line with the provisions of the Constitution.
Counsel to Aiyedatiwa, Ebun Olu-Adegboruwa, last Thursday, in a letter, told the Chief Judge that it would amount to contempt of court to proceed with the impeachment process while two cases over the matter are before the Federal High Court in Abuja and the High Court in Akure.
The lawyer said Aiyedatiwa did not respond to the notice from the House of Assembly because of the restraining order issued by the Federal High Court.
“Under and by virtue of section 287(3) of the Constitution, ‘all persons and authorities in Nigeria’ are to obey and give effect to the orders of the Federal High Court,” he said in the letter to the Chief Judge.
“Our Client swore on oath to defend the Constitution and he cannot act against the said Constitution to disobey the valid and subsisting order of the Federal High Court of Nigeria which has halted the removal proceedings.
“Our Client has not been personally served with any valid Notice of acts of gross misconduct as required by law. Our Client is not in receipt of any valid Notice of acts of gross misconduct properly so issued and bearing the authority of the House of Assembly of Ondo State to which he can respond.
“Our Client has filed and served two separate applications upon the Ondo State House of Assembly , seeking orders of interlocutory injunction against the removal proceedings and also to stay further proceedings in respect of the invalid Notice, which was illegally issued and improperly served.”
Olu-Adegboruwa said that since the House of Assembly had already joined matters in the court over the issue by filing an appeal against the restraining order, it would be against the law to continue with the impeachment process without awaiting the outcome of the case.
“The House of Assembly having submitted to the jurisdiction of the Court by filing processes in Suit No. AK/348/2023 is pending before the High Court in Akure and also purporting to file a complaint before the National Judicial Council in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1249/2023 before the Federal High Court Abuja, is fully aware of and cognizant of the authority of the Court over the subject matter of the removal proceedings against our Client,” he further argued.
“Consequently, it is our considered view that the matter of the planned removal of the Deputy Governor of Ondo State is now subjudice.
“Parties should follow the due process of law, the House of Assembly itself being a creation of law, seeking to implement the provisions of law, rightly or wrongly.
“It cannot and should not be allowed to take the law into its own hands by openly disregarding a subsisting order of the court and other court processes duly served upon it.”
Aiyedatiwa’s ordeal began on September 20, 2023 when nine members of the State House of Assembly commenced the process of removing him from office.
The lawmakers signed the impeachment notice, a petition that detailed the offences that the deputy governor was accused of committing. The petition was presented at an emergency plenary held on Wednesday, September 20.
The Clerk of the Assembly, Benjamin Jaiyeola, was directed by the lawmakers to write to Aiyedatiwa on the allegations against him. This development took place about two weeks after his Principal, Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu, returned from his medical vacation abroad.
Before going on vacation, Akeredolu had handed affairs of the state to his deputy. On his return, the Ondo govenor sacked the entire media crew of the deputy governor.
The Ondo State House of Assembly is made up of 26 lawmakers. Nine lawmakers, the equivalent of one-third, signed the impeachment notice. The next process will require two-thirds of the Assembly to decide via votes whether to investigate the allegation against the deputy governor or not.
To counter the Assembly’s move, Aiyedatiwa approached the court to stop the process and sued the state’s House of Assembly over the impeachment process initiated by the lawmakers against him. The suit, with number AK/348/2023, which was filed at the High Court of Akure on Monday, 25 September and was essentially to stop the state lawmakers from impeaching him.
In the suit filed on his behalf by his lawyer, Adegboruwa, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the embattled deputy governor is seeking various declarations and remedies to halt the impeachment proceedings.
Aiyedatiwa is specifically seeking a declaration from the court that the State House of Assembly lacks the competence to proceed with his impeachment, arguing that such proceedings violate his constitutional and fundamental rights to a fair hearing.
The deputy governor said the removal of his media aides and their reassignment to the Ministry of Information and Orientation by Governor Akeredolu is a breach of his rights and privileges as the deputy governor of the state.
He also sought a declaration affirming that his office, tenure, status, rights, and privileges are safeguarded by the Constitution.
Additionally, he insisted on his entitlement to a fair hearing in the House of Assembly’s determination of his civil rights and obligations as deputy governor.
In the suit, he also raised concern about potential bias against him in the impeachment process, citing the House of Assembly’s previous statements and actions, including the conduct of media trials without providing him prior notice of alleged misconduct.
Aiyedatiwa also sought an order to stop the Chief Judge of the state from accepting or acting upon any request from the House to set up any panel to investigate any acts of gross misconduct against him.
Essentially, Aiyedatiwa is requesting the court to intervene by halting the impeachment proceedings until his claims are thoroughly examined and adjudicated upon, ensuring that his rights and protections under the law are upheld throughout this legal process.
The Ondo State Government, Governor Akeredolu, the Speaker of the House of Assembly, the Clerk of the House and the Chief Judge of the state have been named as defendants in the suit alongside the State House of Assembly.
About the Author
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
