Politics
Chidi Lloyd: Court Decides On A-Gs Power, Morrow
The coverage of the Rivers State House of Assembly virtually shifted to the court room, last week may be regarded as the most eventful that focused more on an individual member of the House.
But for the momentary diversion to confirm the power of the Police to invite and question the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Otelemaba Dan Amachree, over the alarm he raised regarding the security of the life of the State Governor and some top government officials, as well as the matter involving the five anti-Amaechi lawmakers and the other 27, the week under review would be best christened “Hon. Chidi Lloyd’s week”.
It started on Sunday with an alarm raised by the Deputy Speaker of the House, Hon. Leyii Kwanee, to the effect that the Leader of the House, Hon. Lloyd was going blind. He explained that the gradual blindness was the result of ill-treatment meted out to Lloyd by the Police while keeping him in their custody.
Such ill-treatment, he said, included being blind-folded, tortured and sprayed with tear-gas all over his body, especially in his eyes as a means of extracting information from him. In order to stop what he called dehumanizing treatment of the Leader, Kwanee said the 27 pro- Amaechi lawmakers were considering taking the matter outside the shores of the country to protect the rights of Hon. Lloyd.
By Tuesday, when the prosecution (Police) was to produce the accused (Lloyd) to make a plea of guilty or not guilty to facilitate his release on bail in the High Court presided over by Justice L. L. Nyordee, they failed to produce him, warranting the defense counsel, Beluolisa Nwofor (SAN) to threaten to pray the court to strike out the matter and sue the prosecution for malicious prosecution if they fail to produce his client the next day. Justice Nyordee had adjourned the matter to Wednesday, after the defense counsel had waited for hours in the court and the prosecution, led by Donald DENwigwe did not turn up.
When the court reconvened on Wednesday, and the Leader was produced, Lloyd’s plea could not be taken because his counsel queried the right of Denwigwe, who is a private lawyer to appear in a criminal charge by the Police without a fiat from the Attorney-General (AG) of the state. He therefore, urged the court to delist Denwigwe from the counsels to prosecute the matter, pending when the fiat could be granted.
Denwigwe argued that the matter was not initiated by the AG, but by the Commissioner of Police (CP), hence it does not require him to provide an authority from the AG of the state.
He insisted that the court should rule on the application on the jurisdiction of the prosecution before the plea could be taken.
At a point, the AG, Nworgu Boms, invoked the powers conferred on him by Section 211(1)(b) of the Constitution to take over the prosecution, saying that he was acting with the sense of public duty and law. This announcement, Denwigwe said, was premature because the accused had not been duly arraigned; hence there was nothing for the AG to takeover.
Justice Nyordee therefore adjourned the matter to August 6, 2013, saying that plea cannot be taken and the court cannot make any order on the custody of the accused.
On Thursday, the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Amachree in a press statement appealed to the Police to stop torturing Hon. Lloyd, while also debunking insinuations that he sneaked out into a West African country in order to evade arrest by the Police following Justice Adolphus Enebeli’s judgment that the Police had the right to invite and question him. He explained that he was on official assignment to Windhoek, Namibia where he led the state’s deligation to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) meeting.
On Friday the court reconvened again to hear a bail motion by Chidi Lloyd, but Presiding Judge, Latan Nyordee refused to hear the motion because no plea had been taken in the case preferred against him by the Police. Adjourning the matter to the earlier adjourned date of August 6, Nyordee held that when an interlocutory application is filed in a criminal charge as serious as the one Lloyd is facing, it is proper for the accused person to be properly arraigned before application for bail can be heard.
Accordingg to the statement, the Board and National Executive Committee of PANDEF, noted with very grave concern the recent spate of political developments in Rivers State.
“Regrettably, these developments have now degenerated into the decision of the Rivers State House of Assembly to commence impeachment proceedings against the governor and deputy governor.
“This is a deeply disturbing situation that demands urgent attention in order to forestall further escalation and breakdown of law and order.
“This concern is heightened by the critical importance and strategic centrality of Rivers to the Niger Delta region and to the broader socio-political stability and economic wellbeing of Nigeria as a whole”, the statement said.
The Forum called on all parties involved in the resurgent political imbroglio to sheathe their swords and embrace peace.
“This should be guided by the principles of give-and-take, dialogue, tolerance, and political equanimity.
“All stakeholders must place paramount importance on peace, development and the welfare of the people of Rivers.
“We must now focus squarely on good governance and development of the state,” the Forum said.
PANDEF commended President Bola Tinubu, the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), respected elders of Rivers State, and other well-meaning Nigerians for their previous and ongoing efforts aimed at restoring peace and stability in the state.
Speaking in an interview on Saturday, January 10, Chief Sara-Igbe alleged that the minister had flouted regulations governing the commencement of electioneering campaigns by moving from one local government area to another to galvanise political support.
According to him, the action amounted to a clear breach of electoral guidelines being carried out with a troubling sense of impunity that could undermine the rule of law.
“Wike has violated the electoral laws of campaigning by going from local government to local government to talk to the people. He travelled from one local government to another. As a result of his visits to local government areas, he has broken election regulations and continues to do all these things without fear of repercussions”, Chief Sara-Igbe said.
The remarks came as Chief Wike was set to round off a state-wide “thank-you” tour that covered all 23 local government areas of Rivers State.
Although the minister had described the tour as an appreciation visit following support for President Bola Tinubu in the 2023 general elections, critics say the engagements have assumed an overtly political character.
Observers note that during several stops, including recent visits to Andoni and Bonny local government areas, the minister rallied supporters across party lines under what he termed a “Rainbow Coalition,” a move widely interpreted as part of a broader political strategy.
During these engagements, Chief Wike was also reported to have made remarks perceived as a veiled challenge to the authority of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, while repeatedly referencing the 2027 elections and urging supporters to prepare to “correct the mistake” of 2023.
Chief Sara-Igbe warned that allowing such activities to continue unchecked could erode public confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process and called on relevant authorities to enforce existing laws without fear or favour.
The Commission, in a statement on Wednesday, claimed that there were plans by the same group to escalate a smear campaign against its Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, to frustrate ongoing investigations and prosecutions involving prominent individuals.
The statement endorsed by the agency’s spokesman, Mr Dele Oyewale, claimed that the action was intended to distract the Commission through unfounded allegations of political bias in the discharge of its duties.
The EFCC warned that it would not stand by and watch “those recruited into this ignoble enterprise” or allow any attempt to derail it from “the patriotic task of improving public accountability in Nigeria.”
The Commission made it clear that those recruited into this venture were under close watch, adding that it would not tolerate any attempt to distract it from the patriotic task of improving public accountability in Nigeria.
“The EFCC reiterates its non-political stance in all its activities. Facts on the ground clearly show that any political actor belonging to the ruling party or opposition party, with corruption baggage, has no hiding place from the operational radar and dynamics of the Commission.
“As a matter of fact, several strong members of the ruling and opposition parties are either facing trial before the courts or being investigated by the Commission.
“It is needful that Nigerians appreciate the fact that the Commission is keeping faith with its Establishment Act in all its operations.
“Therefore, the Commission reiterates its commitment to justice, without fear or favour, in the fulfilment of its mandate,” the statement pointed out.
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