By Emman Ovuakporie & Johnbosco Agbakwuru

ABUJA—MEMBERS of the House of Representatives yesterday waded into the crisis rocking the Kogi State House Assembly as a 10-man panel had been mandated to investigate the alleged illegal removal of the Speaker, MomohJimoh Lawal, his Deputy, Aliyu Akuh and the Majority leader, Kolawole Matthew.

Kogi-Assembly

This came as the embattled Speaker and 14 of his supporters in the 20 members Kogi State House of Assembly stormed the National Assembly, NASS, and accused the executive of instigating the crisis rocking the House.

The panel of investigators is headed by the Deputy Majority Whip, Pally Iriase, All Progressives Congress, APC, Owan Federal Constituency and the panel is expected to report back to the House within one week.

This was sequel to a motion under matters of national importance sponsored by Sunday Karimi, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Kogi.

Karimi while moving the motion argued that what happened in the Kogi House of Assembly was an illegality.

According to him, “Section 92(2)(c) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 stipulates that the Speaker or Deputy Speaker of to the State Assembly shall vacate office if he is removed from office by a resolution of the House of Assembly by the votes of not less than two-third majority of the members. In Kogi State, there are a total number of 25 members of the State House of Assembly, but five of them had their elections nullified at the court of Appeal and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC is yet to conduct a fresh election in the state constituencies.

Accordingly, only 20 members are currently validly elected in the House of Assembly and two-third of 20 is at least 13 members.”

He said Governor Bello was alleged by the remaining 15 members to have earlier threatened them to remove the Speaker, Alhaji MomohJimoh Lawal “and appoint his choice as the Speaker instead.”

Members who unanimously supported the motion included Femi Gbajabiamila, the Majority Leader of the House, Nnena Elendu- Ukeje, Rasak Atunwa, Sunday Adepoju, Tajudeen Yusuf and Edward Pwajok

Recall that the 15 aggrieved members of Kogi State Assembly, had in a petition to the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara dated February 17, 2016 titled: “Act of impunity by Governor of Kogi State Alhaji Yahaya Bello and five (5) members of the Kogi State House of Assembly.”

The Speaker while constituting the committee gave members a week, to report back to the House in a bid to avert a constitutional crisis.
Meanwhile, the aggrieved Kogi lawmakers that stormed NASS, claimed Governor Bello played a pivotal role in the removal of the speaker.