Philip Shuaibu Impeached, Omobayo Godwins Sworn in as Edo New Deputy Governor

Philip Shuaibu Impeached, Omobayo Godwins Sworn in as Edo New Deputy Governor

Today was a case of two realities in Edo State that brought out the beauty of democracy: the State House of Assembly impeached Comrade Philip Shuaibu while Engr Omobayo Marvelous Godwins was sworn in as the state’s deputy governor. One person is joyous and the other angry and nagging. Mr. Omobayo, who climbs the seat

Today was a case of two realities in Edo State that brought out the beauty of democracy: the State House of Assembly impeached Comrade Philip Shuaibu while Engr Omobayo Marvelous Godwins was sworn in as the state’s deputy governor. One person is joyous and the other angry and nagging.

Mr. Omobayo, who climbs the seat as the youngest deputy governor in the history of Edo state, wore a white kaftan and a red native cap to match and was sworn in in an ecstatic atmosphere in the presence of the traditional rulers and stakeholders at the state government house a few hours after Mr. Shuaibu’s impeachment was ratified by 18 out of 19 lawmakers. It was almost inevitable that Philip Shuaibu would be ousted given his long disagreement with his boss, Governor Obaseki.He was found guilty of unauthorised disclosure of government information.

The new deputy governor, like Mr Shuaibu, is from Akoko Ado Local Government and was born on July 19, 1986. He is an engineer with professional experience in the oil and gas sector. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Benin (UNIBEN). He has memberships in both the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) and the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE). According to his profile, he worked for Dresser Wayne West Africa Limited as a Senior Maintenance Engineer.

He contested for a seat in the House of Representatives on the platform of the Labour Party in 2023 but lost to the APC candidate, Peter Akpatason. He has since defected from the Labour Party and joined the People’s Democratic Party.

Mr. Shuaibu had put up a spirited battle to save his position and made attempts to thwart the process leading to his impeachment.The state lawmakers perfected the move to impeach Comrade Shuaibu during their plenary sessions in Benin City, the Edo state capital. Before the impeachment, the legislators adopted the report of a seven-man committee set up by the chief judge of the State Justice, Daniel Okungbowa, to investigate allegations of misconduct against the deputy governor.

The lawmakers began the impeachment proceedings against Shuaibu last week when twenty-one of the 24 lawmakers signed a petition to oust him as the number 2 citizen in the state. According to the lawmakers, Shuaibu was guilty of perjury and unlawful disclosure of the state’s government-sensitive information.

Although Shuaibu attempted to make his impeachment impossible and fought back approaching the Federal High Court in Abuja to halt the plot against him and urged the court to restrain the State House of Assembly, Chief Judge, and Governor Godwin Obaseki from taking further action on the impeachment process pending the resolution of the substantive matter, the outcome was futile. The impeached deputy governor also refused to honour the invitation sent to him by the panel.

This is because Justice James Omotoso, the High Court judge, ruled that all parties to the case must be served with notice, granted the requested substituted service of notice of impeachment to the Deputy Governor, and then postponed the hearing until April 15, 2024.

My Impeachment Threat To Democracy, Says Shaibu
 width=Impeached Deputy Governor, Phi;ip Shuaibu.

In his reaction, Mr Philip Shuaibu described his impeachment as a threat to the nation’s democracy and he believed it was a “flagrant abuse” In a video message posted on his social media pages shortly after he was impeached from his position.

He started by thanking the good people of Edo State for standing by him in “this struggling circumstances,” adding that, “It is with heavy heart, yet a resolute spirit that I come before you to address the recent events that have unfolded within our dear state.

“I denounce in strongest term the illegal impeachment by the Edo State House of Assembly over trumped up charges, this is not just an attack on me as an individual, but on the very democratic principle that we hold dear, it is a dangerous descent into dictatorship and a threat to the foundation of our democracy.”

Shaibu further went on to say, “Let it be clear that this impeachment was hatched because of my ambition to contest the Edo State 2024 governorship election under the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). An ambition that is a legal right to all citizens of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Disagreement Between Shuaibu and Obaseki

Without a doubt, Shuaibu’s impeachment cannot be separated from the political loggerhead he has been having with his immediate past principal, the Edo state Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki over his ambition to become his successor.

Obaseki, being the leader of the party, the Peoples Democratic Party in Edo state stood against Shuaibu’s ambition by giving a standing order that the position of Governor be zoned to Edo Central. The political permutation worked naturally against Phillip Shuaibu, who, on the other hand, is from Edo North, which recently produced former Governor Adams Oshiomole, who ruled the state for eight years.

Not satisfied with his principal’s move, Mr. Shuaibu decided to conduct a parallel primary election, after which he declared himself the winner and the legitimate flagbearer of the coming state governorship election for the PDP. However, the party declared businessman Asue Ighodalo as the party’s flagbearer for the exercise coming up later in the year.

Before the primary election, Obaseki had accused Shuaibu of plotting to unseat him as the state governor, while Shuaibu also claimed his principal was working with the state lawmakers to impeach him.

Shuaibu, Another Case of Successful Impeachment of Deputy Governor

Disagreements between governors and their deputies are not novel in the Nigerian political terrain, where there are always plots to unseat recalcitrant deputy governors who are at loggerheads with their governors. Some of the plots ended up unsuccessful, while others recorded successes.

In 2019, the then Deputy Governor of Kogi State, Mr Simon Achuba was impeached by members of the Kogi State House of Assembly in Lokoja, the state capital. He went to Court and won and was asked to be paid his salary for the period of his removal.

Mr Achuba’s impeachment was based on an allegation of gross misconduct, which was investigated by a committee set up by the State Chief Judge, Justice Nasir Ajana. The investigation resulted in the impeachment of the deputy governor following deliberations on the report, with a unanimous decision to impeach Mr. Achuba.

On the other hand, an attempt to impeach the two past deputy governors of Ondo state was not attainable, as the judiciary stood as the barricade against such ploys.

In 2020, there was a request to set up a panel to investigate the state deputy, Mr. Agboola Ajayi, the former deputy to Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu in his first term as governor by the State House of Assembly but the Chief Judge of Ondo State, Justice Oluwatoyin Akeredolu, rejected the request.

In her response, Justice Akeredolu told the lawmakers that her reasons for rejecting the Assembly’s request were based on the fact that the process required by the 1999 Constitution for setting up such a probe panel had not been completed by the lawmakers.

This is because the planned impeachment of Mr. Ajayi by their colleagues in the legislative house was opposed by nine lawmakers, making the process pointless.

Justice Akeredolu also attached a letter, indicating that the matter of impeachment of the deputy governor was sub judice.

Similarly, in October 2023, Olusegun Odusola, Chief Judge of Ondo State, rejected a directive from the state House of Assembly to form a seven-person panel to investigate allegations of gross misconduct leveled against Deputy Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa.

The lawmakers had earlier directed the judge to form the panel to impeach the deputy governor over an allegation of disloyalty to his principal, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu while he was battling with a critical health condition which later led to his death. Aiyedatiwa is currently the state governor, having succeeded Akeredolu.

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