From Ahmed Abubakar, Dutse
Jigawa State House of Assembly Speaker, Idris Garba has been removed over refusal to share, equally, N12 million
allegedly released to him by Governor
Muhammadu Badaru Abubakar as lawmakers’ New Year ‘gift.’
Besudesm Garba was also removed over his high handedness, rigidity and refusal to carry along along his colleagues in activities of the House.
And so, yesterday, out of 30 members 25 signed his impeachment notice. Eventually, 23 members removed him at a plenary where he was absent.
His deputy, Ahmed Garba, presided at the session where he was impeached. There was no dissenting voice.
Garba, from Jahun local government, emerged speaker in 2015, in a chamber populated mostly by newcomers.
His colleagues also accused him of arrogating “to himself too much power, which necessitated us in losing confidence in him.”
The last straw for Garba, they claimed, was the alleged case of a missing N6 million from the N12 million released to members by the governor as their New Year gift.
An assembly source told Daily Sun members were not happy with the situation and demanded for an explanation from him. He reportedly ignored their request.
In a related development, some politicians in the state also criticised the assembly for sponsoring 11 members including Garba, to Mauritius, on a non-specified reason while 18 members went to Saudi Arabia, on pilgrimage.
A civil servant, who works in the assembly but, who declined to be named said, “it was glaring that when our people are barely able to feed themselves, some few members are only concerned about how to make frivolous travels with taxpayers money.”
“Lawmakers ought to have considered the feelings of the ordinary people and the relevance of the trip before embarking on such a wasteful venture.
“I was not aware of the reason for the travel, but, what I know is that they hurriedly made their submission before the Eid-el-Fitri celebration and it was immediately approved, including travel allowances to Mauritius”, he alleged.
In his reaction to the development in his state, North West Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Yusuf Adamu Babura, told Daily Sun that Garba’s impeachment will offer no benefit whatsoever to the people of the state.
He said the playoff in the legislative arm was a matter of ‘elite conflict’ rather than a struggle for ordinary people of the state.
Babura alleged the speaker’s impeachment would pave way “for the elevation of another speaker who cannot hold his head before the Executive.
“The All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state promised change to the people but, ironically, rather than change or improve the well-being of the people of the state, they are busy changing themselves daily.”
He regretted the development in assembly and said it was “not different from bickerings which has characterised the APC across Nigeria, adding that it is “in their blood to fester crisis rather than come up with meaningful developments for the people. The PDP chieftain assured that his party is set for a rebound in the North West and will recapture the Government House in Dutse, as “the people of Jigawa state are already tired of the lies they were told by the APC a few years ago.”