The Ondo State House of Assembly has clarified that it has not suspended the ongoing impeachment proceedings against the embattled deputy governor of the state, Lucky Aiyedatiwa.
According to the Assembly, the process was only temporarily halted due to the position of the Chief Judge of the state, Olusegun Odusola.
A statement issued by Femi Emodamori, the lawyer to the House of Assembly, during the weekend affirmed that the impeachment process will continue until it reaches a logical conclusion.
NewsNow reported that Olatunji Oshati, the Chairman of the House Committee on Information, had announced on Friday that the Assembly was suspending the impeachment process in response to an ex-parte order from an Abuja Federal High Court. https://dailypost.ng/2023/10/13/ondo-assembly-halts-impeachment-proceedings-against-aiyedatiwa/
However, Emodamori emphasized that the suspension claim does not reflect the position of the Assembly.
He stated, “There are numerous judgments from the highest courts in Nigeria affirming that no court has jurisdiction to interfere in an impeachment process as long as the House of Assembly complies with all constitutional procedures.
“The Honourable Chief Judge himself acknowledged in his widely reported response to my client that he was aware of the aforementioned provisions of Section 188(10) of the Constitution, which he even quoted verbatim.
“However, the Chief Judge expressed his preference for the ex parte order, which he believed “restricted his actions,” to be vacated or set aside first. The Chief Judge evidently prefers to err on the side of caution.”
