After being told by their colleagues to resign or be impeached, Mrs. Patricia Olubunmi Etteh and Mr. Babangida Nguroje yesterday resigned as the House of Representatives Speaker and Deputy Speaker.
Their action brought to an end a tortuous journey that spanned weeks of anxiety, fisticuffs and, even death in the legislative chamber.
The resignations came after Etteh's supporters had lost out heavily in a poll by the members to pick a Speaker pro-tempore to consider the report of a probe into allegations that Etteh approved N628 million for the renovation of her official residence and that of Nguroje, as well as the buying of 12 exotic cars.
While a member was moving a motion that Etteh and Nguroje be impeached if they failed to resign, the Deputy Speaker turned in his resignation letter, citing the need to move the nation forward.
Then, some female members of the chamber, led by Hadija Bukar Ibrahim from Yobe State, knelt down before Etteh for about five minutes, pleading with her to thrown in the towel.
And at exactly 4.20 p.m., Etteh handed her resignation letter to the Acting Clerk of the House, Niyi Ajiboye, citing advice from relations and friends.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a statement by its National Secretary, Bernard Eze, said that "it has taken the resignation of Etteh and her deputy, Nguroje, in good faith and hopes that this will lead to an end to the crisis in the House."
The Guardian learnt that the replacements for the former Speaker and her deputy may emerge today.
The members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the chamber had turned down a directive by the leadership of the party to come to the national secretariat for another round of dialogue yesterday. They reported to the chamber in the National Assembly as early as 9.00 a.m. ahead of the 10.00 a.m. official time for the start of legislative business. The sitting could however not begin until 12.21p.m. when Etteh and other principal officers of the chamber filed in. As soon as the opening prayers were offered, Etteh apologised to the members for the late start of business, explaining that the caucus of the party had invited them to a meeting at the national secretariat of the party.
Etteh said before the start of the business of the day, which was deliberation of the report of the House committee that investigated the contract scam, she needed to apologise that the House was not properly adjourned on October 23, 2007 when the last sitting was held.
She said: "I want to admit that the House was improperly adjourned and I regret that. I had wished that peace may reign and we put this matter behind us. The death of Honourable Ibrahim Safana and other unfortunate incidents should have been a lesson to us."
Etteh added: "By the rule of the House, it is not my duty to preside over the report of the committee and at no time have I indicated to preside over the David Idoko report. I am a peace-loving person and I have been trying to be fair. I am not insensitive to the happening in the House. It is not fair to preside over my own affairs. It behoves on me to educate the public and eschew personal interest."
She added that since her deputy was also accused and could not preside over the report, the rules of the chamber should be followed by electing a Speaker pro-tempore to preside over the debate on the report.
At this point, the leader of the minority in the chamber, Mohammed Ali Ndume, raised a point of order, citing Order 7 which explains why minority parties have leaders in the chamber. He reminded the House that before the House was abruptly adjourned on the last sitting day, he had moved a motion for the Speaker to step down before the debate on the report could be taken.
The Speaker admitted that there was a problem and that it should be tackled amicably. She asked the Majority Leader, Tunde Akogun, to move a motion for the processes that would lead to the debate of the report. He did.
In his motion, he sought that the Clerk of the House be allowed to conduct the election of the Speaker pro-tempore but added that an interim Speaker should be restricted only to the debate of the report after which Etteh would return to her seat to adjourn the House and walk out with all her paraphernalia of office. He said that the Speaker should also be allowed to lead the procession to the chamber with the mace and open the session until the debate on the report was completed.
But the Minority Leader, Ndume, made an amendment asking that the members be allowed to determine the procedure for the debate and it was carried. He also said the aspect of the leader's motion that had to do with procedure for the emergence of the Speaker pro-tempore and conduct of the debate should be replaced with his prayer. This was agreed on. But before they could ask the acting Clerk, Niyi Ajiboye, to take over the proceedings, a member of the Etteh group, Dino Melaye, raised a point of order citing Order 9 (i)5. The order forbids the chamber from discussing any issue on which a judicial interpretation is pending. Melaye said some private lawyers had gone to court seeking to restrain the chamber from asking the Speaker to step aside in the matter, stressing that the relief sought was the matter the House was about considering.
Etteh ruled that Dino's point of order was right. She said: "You know that when a matter is in court, this chamber does not discuss it."
But Patrick Obayagbon from Edo State cited order 9 (1)5, arguing that the rule empowers the Speaker to see whether the matter would affect the ruling of the court. In the case before the House, the Speaker was involved. He said that if the House is allowed to pass such judgment, it would amount to allowing the Speaker to be a judge in her own case. Leo Ogor cited Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution which deals with fair hearing and the principle of natural justice and asked the Speaker to do justice to the Idoko panel report.
Bala Ibn Nallah said he would wish a day like yesterday never came for the members to be arguing over what was supposed to be a straight forward matter. He appealed to members to be guided by their conscience.
He said the suit involving the House had the chairman of the House Committee on Rules and Business and it was ridiculous for anybody to assume that he did not know about the case. Nallah noted that at the inauguration of the House, all members swore to uphold the Constitution and do the bidding of Nigerians. He asked his colleagues to live up to that oath of office by doing the right thing. He said the claim of the plaintiffs in the said suit was different from the issue before the House and urged members to go ahead and do the right thing.
Samson Osagie from Edo noted that Order 7 of the House rules allows the Speaker to withdraw ruling on certain matters and called on Etteh to withdraw the ruling on the issue raised by Dino. John Eno from Cross River State told the Speaker to take a cue from the speech of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua at the Senate retreat in Port Harcourt and resolve the matter as quickly as possible. But Ogor maintained that the work of the parliament could not be stopped by the court.
Cyril Maduabum from Anambra State noted that the House had spent five months without justifying the allowances and salaries paid from the tax payers' money. He told the Speaker that she started well by expressing regrets and apologies, adding that he had thought that she would continue on that note to end the rift. He further said there would be life after the Speakership and that there were many former Speakers who still command respect in the country and if Etteh joined them it would not be anything different. Maduabum said if the Speaker was exonerated, she would be returned to the seat but if otherwise, she had played her own part.
After his speech, Garba Shehu Matazu from Katsina said that Etteh had made history as the first female Speaker in the country and Africa and should consider that as enough honour stressing that after the Speakership, there would still be life. He told Etteh to follow the path of honour and step aside. At this point, Etteh said even if it would take months and days, the chamber would still find a solution to the impasse.
The House Leader moved a motion for the Clerk to call for nomination so that a Speaker pro-tempore could be elected.
The acting Clerk called for nominations and the Integrity Group members unanimously settled for Terngu Tsegba. The pro-Etteh group were divided and initially came up with two different nominations – Sada Soli from Katsina and West Idahosa from Edo State. Soli declined while West was not in the chamber but the election was conducted through division of the House. Tsegba polled 255 votes while West had 33, with two members abstaining.
Tsegba assumed the seat as at 3.12 p.m. after hugging Etteh. He decried the crisis in the chamber and noted that the action of the members yesterday marked the beginning of the resolution of the problem. He pledged to be fair and firm in the process of resolving the problem. There after, the House went into an executive session.
At the end of the session, which lasted for about 45 minutes, the Speaker pro-tempore announced that the members agreed that Etteh and her deputy should resign, or be impeached. While Oguakwa was trying to move a motion for the impeachment of the presiding officers, the Deputy Speaker turned in his resignation letter citing the need to make sacrifice to move the nation forward. At this point, the female lawmakers knelt down before Etteh telling her to throw in the towel. And at exactly 4.20 p.m. she handed her resignation letter to the acting Clerk.
From John-Abba Ogbodo, Abuja
The Guardian
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
