The House of Representatives has threatened to commence impeachment proceedings against President Goodluck Jonathan for failing to implement the budget as passed. Is this what they should be talking about at this period of instability in the country?

By Alaine Elizabeth, Sandra Udeh & Oluwasayo Hamza

Mr Mike Agboola: I won’t say they should not focus on that, they are free to overview all aspects of the nation’s problems. I believe the problem now is that the House of Representatives is threatening to impeach the president because he has not implemented the budget 100 percent which is quite impossible because there is no place in the world where a budget is implemented 100 percent.

It is quite different when they say he has not gone far in implementing the budget, they are just trying to create problems.My perspective is that they are fighting for their own pockets because the more the project is implemented, the more goes into their pockets as they are still the people to handle the contracts. I think they are being quite dodgy and are not truthful to themselves. Impeaching the president will only cause more trouble as the people from the south-south will want to retaliate thereby bringing more crisis to the nation.

Mrs Joy Chikezie: The threat by the House of Representatives to impeach President Jonathan is not an issue that should be given much attention now. The lawmakers should concentrate on the challenges facing the country. Poverty and insecurity are the major issues that should be focused on rather than impeaching Jonathan which I believe will bring more crisis to the country. The House of Representatives should go back to the drawing table and consider what is good for the masses. They should do things according to the expectations of the masses rather than for their own selfish reasons.

Mr Akintunde Oyetunde: The impeachment threat by the House of Representatives is just a way to get back at the president due to the fuel subsidy probe, but as an average Nigerian in all ramifications considering all the sectors of the economy, the real growth of the nation ought to be measured. The president I believe is not performing at all but I don’t think impeaching him will bring any feasible and dynamic leadership to the country as the same party that has produced three presidents will still produce another president. I say their exercise is in futility.

Mrs. Ijeoma Nwachukwu: No, I don’t think this is what the House of Representatives should be talking about now. Amidst all the crises in the country, it is the budget issue they are focusing on. There are issues like kidnapping in the south, bombings and killings in the north, so why is their number one priority the president and his failure to implement the budget? Why aren’t they trying to end all these crises?

Ms. Erica Udeh- The House of Representatives is saying they want to impeach the president because of his failure to implement the budget, are they sure that is their main reason? It is not as if President Jonathan is not doing anything, he is trying to enhance security in the country due to the Boko Haram insurgency. I really think that instead of trying to impeach the president, they should be helping him to solve the insecurity problem in the country.

Kingsley Chiokolo: If the House of Representatives is trying to impeach the president, they shouldn’t only do it for lack of budget implementation but also for his inability to put an end to all these bombings in the country; now, people are scared to go to church in the north because of Boko Haram. The economy is bad, there are still no job opportunities and he did promise to provide more job opportunities when he assumed office. I can’t see any good thing he has done. He really needs to leave and when he leaves the person that takes over should do something to address all these challenges.

Mrs. Nike Durojaiye – I support the impeachment move because the man is a poor performing head of state. He has not lived up to our expectation as president. He is supposed to have addressed many of the challenges facing he country since he came into office, but he has failed and this is unfortunate for Nigeria.

Mr. Adeoye Hamzat-There is nothing bad about the impeachment move. We are getting to another end of the year whereby government would be talking about another budgeting. Meanwhile, the previous one is outstanding. The area of the current budget which deals with salary is mandatory. But capital budget which concerns development of the economy is left idle, and money has been voted for it. Now, whether we have deficit or surplus, we don’t know. By October, we would throw another budget to the National Assembly for consideration. The President should be impeached because he has failed in his duties. If he is a President that values dignity, he should in fact resign for non-performance.

Mr. Adedayo Durojaiye-‘I support that the lawmakers should impeach him. This is because the country under him has been static. All that has happened under him is a harvest of scandals. The oil scandal is still very much with us. Now they brought up the issue of Boko Haram and the education sector they want to privatize.

They also brought up the issue of Oteh going back to office, somebody who has allegations against her and they are bringing her back to office! Diezani Allison-Madueke has not functioned effectively as petroleum minister and she is still in office. Jonathan has failed as president, he is not worth being in that office.
If it would take his impeachment for Nigeria to move forward, so be it.