Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The Federal Government is to delay gazetting Executive Order 10 recently signed by President Muhammadu Buhari, giving autonomy to state legislature and the judiciary.
Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum and Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi disclosed this to State House Correspondents, after a meeting between some governors and the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed and the Attorney General of the Federation, General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami.
Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari hosted the meeting, which was also attended by Governors Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State and his Kebbi State counterpart, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu.
Fayemi said after listening to their concerns about the constitutionality of the Executive Order, President Buhari agreed that the gazetting of the order would be delayed.
He said: “We have a delegation of the governors’ Forum here to discuss some matters of fundamental importance to the nation and the President has asked that we meet with the Attorney General, the Chief of Staff and the Minister of Finance Planning and Budget on the issue. It is an issue that has seized the interest of many of you in the media and a lot of people in the federation, it is about the autonomy of the State legislature and the judiciary and we’ve met with the President before now on it and the President was very pleased that for us as Governors, we are all united in support of the autonomy of State judiciary and the legislature; that’s the position of the 36 governors of the federation.
“What is at issue is on the constitutionality of the modalities of what had been put in the Executive Order and the President was gracious enough to say ok, given your concerns about that we will delay the gazetting of the order and allow you meet with the Attorney General and the Minister of Finance out work out the modalities.”
Fayemi explained that the governors have also been consulting with the Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures, in order to work out an amicable resolution of the matter.