Abuja — Over 200 members of the House of Representatives have appended their signatures to a document that seeks to impeach President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, following his prolonged absence from the country and failure to hand over to the vice-president pending the time of his return.
This is just as the Speaker of the House, Hon. Dimeji Bankole, assured another group of eminent Nigerians, comprising of former Presidents, Vice Presidents, former Chief Justices of the Federation and ministers that the House is ready to do what is absolutely necessary to move the nation forward.
The 200 members, in a letter dated January 25, 2010 and addressed to the president and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, directed Yar'Adua to adhere to Section 145 of the constitution and transmit the communication required to notify the legislature of his absence in order to avert a looming national crisis.
It also stated that the president should address the people of Nigeria in a nationwide telecast to encourage and reassure the Nigerian people. Failure to do this, they added, would leave them no other option but to resort to any appropriate legislative process under the constitution of Nigeria.
"We, the undersigned members of the House of Representatives of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, may, in the national interest be compelled to resort to any appropriate legislative process under the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to salvage the nation and our hard-won democracy if the present avoidable danger or threat to the existence of our nation and its democracy are not averted," the letter stated.
The members said they were compelled to act in this manner because of the fundamental issues involved in the matter which, according to them, "is not about your good self but about the sovereignty of the people of Nigeria and the sanctity of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the sustenance of our young democracy and the stabilisation of our diverse and dynamic polity."
The letter continued, "It is our view that even without the clear provisions of Section 145 of the constitution, it would have been necessary and proper for you to have notified the National Assembly and the people of Nigeria of your absence from the country and the reasons thereof.
"Mr President, we feel duty-bound to inform you that the situation of the country since you left is, to say the least, worrisome if the truth be told. These developments include the listing of Nigeria as a country of interest by the United States of America in their global terrorism watch list and the attendant diplomatic and national security challenges arising there-from, the condemnable acts of violence and mayhem in Jos, Plateau State, and the threat of same in other states in the federation, the dwindling international influence of Nigeria, the lull in the interpretation of the laudable amnesty programme in the Niger Delta region with the attendant likelihood of insurgence of militant activities and, above all, the need to provide leadership for the ongoing constitutional amendment and electoral reform process."
The over 200 members who signed the letter were discovered by LEADERSHIP to have been holding meetings on the issue even before the second court ruling by the court with just 38 members before the number gradually grew to what it was as at last night.
According to a member of the group, members were coordinating support based on state level, adding, "This is just a reaction to the directive given to FEC by the court to decide in its meeting on the case."
When this reporter phoned the Chairman of the House Committee on Media, Hon. Eseme Eyiboh, to comment, his phone was not reachable but the chairman of the Business and Rules Committee, Hon. Ita Enang, described it as "a rumour at its best".
Meanwhile, members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) have been accused of violating the court order that asked them to pass a resolution within 14 days to tell whether President Yar'Adua was fit to discharge the functions of his office or not.
A human rights activist lawyer, Mr. Bamidele Aturu, vowed to issue Form 49 charging the FEC members for contempt of court because they twisted the resolution by involving cronies and friends of Yar'Adua who were not members of the FEC to cast vote.
Aturu added that it was not possible for the FEC to resolve on health status of someone that they don't see around, moreso, they are not medical practitioners.
At a press conference held at the New Chelsea Hotel, Abuja, the chairman of the Jigawa State chapter of the Nigerian Bar Association, Barrister Sani Hussaini Garun Gabas, and his lawyer Bamidele Aturu, they vowed to step up their struggle in the bid to invoke Section 146 of 1999 constitution because by virtue of Yar'Adua's health status, he is incapacitated to discharge the functions of his office.
The lawyer also revealed that they intended to appeal the judgement delivered by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Daniel Abutu, which handed the 14-day ultimatum to the FEC.
The grounds of their appeal included praying to the appellate court to determine whether Yar'Adua had not breached Section 146 with his long absence at a Saudi Arabian hospital.
They are also asking the court to declare as unlawful for Yar'Adua running his office off-shore, and if so held, render all he was said to have purportedly signed as null and void.
He said since the president travelled without transmitting a letter to National Assembly, he has therefore violated section 145 of the constitution.
According to Aturu, "We envisaged they forged his signature and some people may still go to jail even long after the exercise."
In another twist, Aturu said, "We had written to the attorney-general of the federation to give us a copy of FEC resolution."
It would be recalled that a 14-day ultimatum on January 22, 2010 pursuant to a suit filed by a former minority leader in the House of Representatives, Hon. Farouk Aliyu, and Garun Gabas against the attorney-general of the federation and the entire Federal Executive Council members.
Justice Abutu, however, averred that the court had no power to pronounce that Yar'Adua was no longer fit and proper to continue to undertake the duties of his office. The judge said it was only the FEC that could take steps to determine whether Yar'Adua was incapacitated or not.
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