NEWSNOW

Suspension: ‘We’ll not surrender to illegality’, Benue LG chairmen dare Gov Alia

Despite suspension by the state government led by Governor Hyacinth Alia, chairmen of local government in Benue State have vowed to continue in charge of their respective local council, describing the suspension as ‘illegal and impunity taking too far’.

It will be recalled that the State Governor, Hyacinth Alia acting on the recommendation of the state house of assembly announced the suspension of all local government chairmen and their councillors indefinitely.

The State House of Assembly had on Wednesday recommended to the state governor to suspend both the executive and legislative arms of the third tier of government to pave the way for investigating the activities of the 23 council areas between 2015 and 2023.

On Friday, a letter signed by the permanent secretary of Bureau of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Ode Ochelle on behalf of the state governor directed the executive and legislative arms of the 23 LGAs to proceed on indefinite suspension with immediate effect.

“Sequel to the approval of the Executive Governor of Benue State, Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia, on the resolution of the Benue House of Assembly suspending you and all council members from office as contained in a letter from the office to the Secretary to the State Government, ref no CAB/BS/SSG/ADM/35/T/XX dated 23,June, 2023.

“You are hereby directed to proceed on an indefinite suspension with immediate effect,” the letter read in parts.

However, the chairmen on the platform of Association of Local Government of Nigeria while addressing newsmen on Saturday vowed not to vacate their offices.

The ALGON chairman, Mike Uba who spoke on behalf of the chairmen insisted that they are going to resume in their respective offices as from Monday.

The chairmen said that there was a subsisting court judgment to the effect that their tenure should run full course as provided under the law without let or hindrance from any quarters

Uba said, “We state without the slightest modicum of ambiguity or prevarication that we do not recognize such purporting of our suspension from office from such quarters as are purporting it, neither do we consider ourselves under any obligation to give heed to same or comply with any directive as emanates from it.

“Our position derives a fundamental base from the incontrovertible fact of our offices being a creation of law as guaranteed under the supreme umbrella of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended in 1999) which recognizes the tier of government we function at as the third in a tripod made up of the Federal, State and Local.

“We were elected as council chairmen on 30th April, 2022 in the local council elections conducted by the Benue State Independent Electoral Commission “BESIEC) and sworn into office on 29th June, 2022

“We in line with the provision of the extant law proclaimed the legislative councils in our various Councils in which we were also duly elected and thereafter forwarded to them for the offices of Supervisors whom we swore into the various statutorily designated offices, together with Special Advisers to our offices.

“We were not appointed into office but were elected by the electorate of Benue State and vested with a mandate which is guaranteed under law, with the procedure for the administration of the councils under our leadership clearly provided for under the Local Government Establishment Law of Benue State.

“It is, therefore, not known to us’ under such law, that we and the entirety of the government at our tier of it can be sacked in the manner as purported by the state Assembly and the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs.

“We equally defer to the judgment of the National Industrial Court held in Makurdi which barred the government of Benue State at all levels from taking any action as seeks to temper with our lawfully recognized mandate as elected council chairmen.

“That judgement of court is still subsisting and we are not even aware that the government appealed against it.

The State ALGON chairman further said, “We will not surrender to illegality and impunity as is being contrived against us. If we surrender to the unlawful purported suspension preferred against us, we will be doing a disservice to Benue State.

“In resisting the impunity, we are doing a duty to the state in line with our sworn oath to discharge the functions vested to our office for the good of the people.

“We reiterate that we do not recognize the purported suspension of our councils – together with the legislative arms of our councils, and as such will not comply with it.

READ ALSO FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE