Ambode’s impeachment: Lagos Assembly locked in emergency meeting

Members of the Lagos State House of Assembly are currently locked in an emergency closed door meeting as the plans the impeach Governor Akinwunmi Ambode thickens.

The Assembly, which adjourned sitting till Monday suddenly summoned members for an emergency meeting on Wednesday, after a massive protest by pro-Ambode supporter appealing to the Assembly not to impeach the governor.

The meeting is currently ongoing as at 5:17pm.

Pressmen were not allowed into the meeting as the lawmakers were said to be holding emergency parliamentary meeting meant for them alone.

Anxious newsmen are hanging around the Assembly’s premises waiting for the outcome of the meeting.

Feelers had it that the meeting was called to deliberate on the issue of Ambode, whom the House had ordered to appear before them on Monday to defend the infractions levelled against him or faced impeachment.

The Assembly had accused Ambode of alleged gross misconduct and spending money from the 2019 budget that had not yet been presented or approved by the House.

Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa had told members who wished that Ambode should be impeached to started collecting signatures in readiness to impeach the governor.

Earlier today, hundreds of supporters loyal to Ambode stormed the Assembly to protest the planned impeachment.

The protesters, in their number marched to the Assembly and caused traffic gridlock.

The protesters carried placards, saying that any move to impeach Ambode would disrupt the coming election, adding that the governor should be allowed to complete his tenure.

The protesters said the governor did not deserve the treatment he was getting from the party, saying they should leave the governor alone.

The State House of Assembly had moved to impeach Ambode over what they called gross misconduct and spending part of the 2019 budget that had not been presented to the Assembly for approval.

They gave the governor one week to appear before the House to explain the infractions levelled against him.

The protesters, under the aegis of the Lagos People’s Assembly (LPA), said as a critical civil society stakeholder in the Lagos Project, they were gravely concerned with the unfolding political drama in the state which might degenerate to a logjam if not handled with the best of statesmanship kits.

“We are fully conscious of the historical truism that under a constitutional democracy, the executive and legislative arms of government must seamlessly work in harmony to deliver the dividends of democracy for the people. Both arms are equal partners in the business of constitutional, democratic governance.

“In recent time, the two tiers of government have been embroiled in a crisis of confidence conflicts. 

The House has commenced an impeachment process against the governor, Akinwunmi Ambode on the allegations that he committed an infraction of the constitution by not personally presenting the 2019 budget within constitutional stipulated period yet, the governor has started disbursing part of the budget. Ambode on the other hand claimed that the Assembly refused to reconvene the House during its last yuletide holiday,” said the Coordinator of the group, Declan Ihekaire.

According to him, from investigation, both arms of government were worried that the budget delay would invariably affect the ability of the government to complete various infrastructural projects commenced by the administration littering the state.

He said the fear of both parties, which was well founded was that opposition would make use of the uncompleted projects as campaign items to disparage the ruling party in the forthcoming general elections, adding that no matter whatever other hidden factors, this was the main bone of contention leading to the political feud for supremacy between the governor and the Assembly.

The leader, Lagos State House of Assembly, Sanai Agunbiade, who received the protest letter on behalf of the Assembly, promised that the Assembly would read through the contest and take action that would be in the collective interest of the people of the state.