Bauchi Deputy Governor impeached
From Ali. M. Ali in Abuja and Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi, 08.14.2009
Friday, August 14, 2009

After fighting for about three months in a desperate bid to keep his job, the Deputy Governor of Bauchi State, Alhaji Mohammed Garba Gadi, yesterday eventually lost the battle.




http://odili.net/news/source/2009/aug/14/207.html

He was removed by the state House Assembly in a unanimous vote, but the impeachment move is believed to have been orchestrated by the state Governor Isa Yuguda.

Gadi’s removal followed the submission of the report of the seven-man investigative panel set up by the House to probe the allegations against him.

In May this year, he was slammed with impeachable offences, which included gross misconduct, collection of double estacode for one trip to Saudi Arabia for 2008 Hajj and giving approval for various contracts above his approval limits.

But sources said Gadi’s main offence was his refusal to join Yuguda in dumping the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), the platform with which they were both elected in 2007, for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Gadi had employed political and legal moves to frustrate his impeachment, one of which was an objection against a member of the panel.

The state High Court ruled in favour of Gadi and the panel immediately replaced him to enable it to complete its assignment.

Yesterday, after reading the panel report on the floor of the House, which took about one hour, the Majority Leader, Hon. Dayyabu Chiroma, moved for its adoption around 12.50 pm.

He reminded his colleagues that the submission of the panel was not debatable.

The motion was seconded by the Deputy Majority Leader, Hon. Auwal Mohammed Jatau.

Speaker Babayo Garba Gamawa called for voting through the raising up of hands by members because, according to him, voice vote was not advisable in such matters.

In the end, 25 members supported the adoption of the report, five opposed while one abstained from voting.

The House has 31 members.

And with that, Gadi stood removed from office.

According to the report, he was found guilty of all the allegations levelled against him with the exception of one, which the House could not substantiate with any written evidence.

The panel said in the report that, “no explanation of the Deputy Governor that certain approvals were done due to exigencies could avail the fact that there was outright negligence and disregard of the government laid down financial policies, the result of which normally creates non-challance, disregard for some norms and practices of civil service by some government officials down the ladder.

“Therefore, the actions of the Deputy Governor on these approvals were found by us to be ultra vires, his powers overreached and deliberate disregard to government policy. Therefore, the allegations are proved.”

Gadi had written a letter to the House denying all the allegations against him, declaring that everything he did was done in the interest of the service and good governance.

After his removal, attempts by THISDAY to get his reactions were unsuccessful as he was said to have travelled out of town to Abuja.

Gadi had fallen out of favour with Yuguda following his refusal to join PDP like the governor and the entire cabinet.

Yuguda, who married Nafisat, one of the daughters of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, joined PDP about four months at an elaborate ceremony in Bauchi attended by the party’s big wigs.

Meanwhile, the ANPP has condemned Gadi’s impeachment, describing it as a “shock” and a “surprise”.

It also described the process as flawed, arguing that the state legislature lacked the jurisdiction to effect the impeachment having all defected to PDP from ANPP, the platform which they won election in 2007.

According to the ANPP, “The impeachment process was a total foul play as the members of the Bauchi State House of Assembly lack the jurisdiction to impeach the Deputy Governor having defected to PDP from ANPP through which platform they were elected,” arguing that the lawmakers had forfeited their seats with their defection to PDP.

‘‘Constitutionally, their actions are illegal, since every of their activities in the House of Assembly is declared illegal as their seats are presumed vacant by our great party,’’ ANPP said in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary Emma Eneukwu.

‘‘Our party believes in rule of law hence, the seats of those defected members of the Bauchi State House of Assembly, by constitution, are vacant. Therefore the impeachment is illegal and cannot hold,’’ he added.

The party also said there was no fair hearing as the impeached deputy governor was not given the chance to defend himself on the allegations levelled against him.

It warned that the PDP-controlled government at the centre was a threat to democracy.

‘‘It is very unfortunate that our democracy has suffered in the hand of the leadership of the PDP-led central government for the past 10 years, even collapsing more and more under this present leadership, ’’ he said.

Eneukwu lamented the actions of defector politicians who allegedly use state resources to silence opposition and leading the nation towards a one-party state.

PDP is in control. But good he was impeached, if he was a clean guy then they wouldn't have a reason to impeach him. Look at fashola, the PDP doesn't like him but they haven't found any reasons for him to be impeached.

The pdp powers can only work against those who are corrupt to begin with

sjeezy8:

PDP is in control. But good he was impeached, if he was a clean guy then they wouldn't have a reason to impeach him. Look at fashola, the PDP doesn't like him but they haven't found any reasons for him to be impeached.

The pdp powers can only work against those who are corrupt to begin with

It's not a good thing he was impeached my friend. PDP is using thuggery to impeach people and the remaining top politicians who refuse to join may be treated the same way.

Aloy~Emeka:

It's not a good thing he was impeached my friend. PDP is using thuggery to impeach people and the remaining top politicians who refuse to join may be treated the same way.

No one should be given a pass for corruption just because they aren't with pdp. The remaining and future government officials should think about not being corrupt before entering politics against the pdp. They are no different from the pdp just in another party