The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State has called on the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, to halt allocations from the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC), to local governments in the state, through the state government as stipulated by the Supreme Court.
PDP Caretaker Committee Chairman, Tony Aziegbemi, made the call at a press briefing he addressed at the party’s secretariat, in Benin, on Monday.
Azigbemi accused Governor Monday Okpebholo, of crippling local government administration in Edo State, creating a constitutional crisis over the handling of local government administration in the state.
He recalled that Gov. Okpebholo unilaterally through the state House of Assembly ordered the suspension of duly elected local government chairmen in total disregard of the law.
The PDP chairman said this directive was executed by the assembly to the letter, under the false pretense of gross misconduct and insubordination, without granting the local government chairmen a fair hearing.
“Not only did the state House of Assembly purportedly and illegally suspend the council chairmen for two months, but their deputies were as well suspended, thereby raising the fundamental question; even if the chairmen were to be suspended, what offense did the deputies commit to warrant their suspension?
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“The illegal action of Okpebholo and the state House of Assembly was despite the clear and binding ruling of every court in the land,” he said.
Also, he added that the state Chief Judge, Justice Daniel Okungbowa, had in an earlier judgement ruled “that the state government, and the state House of Assembly or their agents have no right to suspend or dissolve elected local government council officials, and declaring their suspension null and void.
“The order was totally disregarded by the state government which also disregarded the advice of President Bola Tinubu through the attorney general of the federation on the matter.
“The attorney general of the federation had insisted that an elected local government official cannot be dissolved or suspended without following due process of law, which is the prerogative of councilors in the said local government area.
“Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister for Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, specifically warned that the illegal removal of local government chairmen by governors was a treasonable offense.
“This however, could not stop Okpebholo’s resort to lawlessness and impunity as they deployed thugs and non-state actors who moved from council to council with whips, and other dangerous weapons to enforce the illegal suspension of the local government chairmen.
“Having failed in the purported suspension, Okpebholo resorted to all sorts of illegalities to impeach the council chairmen, and importing non-elected local government legislators in a kangaroo arrangement to sit and pronounce the impeachment of the chairmen,” Aziegbemi said.
