Human rights lawyer, Allen Sowore, has called for the removal of the Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Olamide Oladiji, for flouting a court order over the ongoing impeachment process against the embattled Deputy Governor of the state, Lucky Aiyedatiwa.
According to Sowore, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja had issued an ex-parte order barring the Assembly from proceeding with the impeachment process against Aiyedatiwa.
The lawyer, in a statement, claimed that the Speaker and the Assembly had disregarded the court order.
Sowore emphasised that it is an established principle of law that court orders, whether from the specific case in question or any other case, must be obeyed until they are set aside, as long as they remain valid and in effect, regardless of the status of the individuals involved.
He said: “The Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Olamide Oladiji, has directed the state Chief Judge, Olusegun Odusola, to immediately set up a seven-man panel to investigate the Deputy Governor on nebulous allegations levelled against him during a plenary session, despite an existing valid court order.
“Ostensibly, the Speaker is attempting to disparage and discard the provisions of Section 6(6) a&b of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which vest and extend the judicial powers of the court.”
According to him, it is worrisome that the Speaker resorted to self-help by insisting that the impeachment process of the deputy governor should proceed.
He alleged that the Speaker was being motivated by ulterior motives rather than the collective wishes of the people of the state.
“It is imperative, therefore, to be proactive, circumspect, and patriotic by calling for the immediate removal of such an ineffectual, incompetent, and desperate individual as the leader of one of the most important institutions of democracy before he compromises its integrity and wreaks havoc on our dear state. He should be removed and cited for contempt of court.”
