SIR: The Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) is dismayed by news of the purported impeachment of Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, by 15 lawmakers out of 28 members of the State House of Assembly on November 2, 2006. The impeachment is unconstitutional and illegal and is part of the ploy to throw Anambra State into political violence and crisis.
Section 188(6) of the 1999 Constitution requires that an officer whose office is being investigated should be accorded fair hearing by the panel. In contrast, however, the investigative panel did not hear the governor at any time in their proceedings.
Further, Section 188(9) of the Constitution requires a two-thirds majority to adopt the panel report in which the allegations against the governor were found to be proved. The 15 lawmakers who adopted the panel report against Governor Obi, however, did not constitute a two-third majority of all the members of the House, which would be at least 18 lawmakers.
The verdict of the Court of Appeal, Ibadan Division, finding unconstitutional the impeachment of Governor Rashidi Ladoja on both procedural and substantive grounds should have recommended circumspection to the lawmakers. This was not the case, however. The meeting of Anambra lawmakers before dawn to adopt the panel report already made unconstitutional their proceedings and decision, as did the fact that the meeting was not in the House of Assembly of Anambra State. All these substantiate suggestions that the lawmakers were not acting on behalf of the people or in pursuit of probity but were implementing a script written and directed by powerful persons in the Presidency and PDP.
The impeachment of Governor Obi is part of a plan by anti-democratic forces in the state to protect their election rigging mechanism by means of which they have held power for years and amassed enormous wealth. At the core of this machinery are the various associations that control the markets and motor parks in the state, notably National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) and a group that claims to be part of the Movement of Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB). The anti-democracy forces have used these markets and motor parks as recruitment centres for political thugs who were then deployed by self-acclaimed godfathers of Anambra politics to rig elections and unleash violence during elections.
Governor Obi's effort to flush these organisations from the motor parks and markets in Anambra State therefore struck at the power base of these anti-democratic groups and at the money making machine of the godfathers. The impeachment of Governor Obi is therefore aimed in part to restore the power of the godfathers and the anti-democracy groups who ruled the state by terror under the administration of Governor Chinwoke Mbadinuju and that of Chris Ngige. It is also aimed at securing the state for the PDP in 2007.
The CLO is concerned that the purported impeachment of Governor Obi is part of a co-ordinated process by enemies of democracy to generate political tensions in different parts of the country and use same to either rig the 2007 election or as a justification to postpone the election.
The CLO supports transparency and accountability in governance. We insist, however, that the fight for them do not justify gross violations of human rights, the constitution, or the rule of law, as the Obasanjo administration has done.
The CLO calls on the Nigeria Labour Movement, the students' movement and the civil society to rise up in defence of the rule of law, constitutionalism and democracy n Nigeria.
The CLO also calls on all the people of Anambra State to reject the impeachment and to uphold and support their governor by rejecting the purported impeachment.
The CLO further calls on the National Judicial Commission to take more seriously its regulatory duties over judicial officers. It should investigate Judges of the High Courts of states whose abuse of their exalted offices is destroying the integrity of the judiciary and of the constitution.
Osaze Nosaze,
For: Civil Liberties Organisation,
Lagos.
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