‘No Breach Of Law In NASS Principal Officers Election’

Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State (middle), Rommy Ezeonuwuka (left) and other officials, at the inauguration of 8-Lane Olympic Standard Tartan Tracks at Rojenny Stadium in Oba, last Thursdays

A Senior law lecturer at the
Enugu State University of Science & Technology (ESUT) Prof Frank Asogwa, says countrary to claims, there is no breach of law in the election of the National Assembly principal officers.
Asogwa, who is the Dean, Faculty of Law of the university, made this known in an interview with newsmen in Nsukka, Enugu State, on Thursday.
He said that President Muhammadu Buhari had already issued the proclamation for the inauguration of the 8th National Assembly and so there should be no excuse for absence.
“Since there was proclamation for the inauguration of the 8th National Assembly by President Muhammadu Buhari, on June 9 anybody who failed to be present should blame him or herself and not anybody.
“The Tuesday Senate and House of Representatives elections of their principals followed due constitutional process as there is no breach of any law.
“The aggrieved APC senators can go to court as court belongs to everybody, but it will amount to waste of time, energy and money.
“It is when there is any breach of law that one can  go to court to seek redress, but in this case there is nothing like that,” he said.
Asogwa said that the election of Bukola Saraki as Senate President and the re-election of Sen. Ike Ekweremandu as Deputy Senate President, was political lobbying that was accepted all over the world.
“Political lobbying is allowed in politics and is never an offence as it’s practiced all over the world.
“What happened that Tuesday is PDP senators scratching the back of some APC senators and APC also scratching the back of PDP which is allowed in politics.
“It shows that Nigeria democracy is gradually gaining ground,” he said.
The dean said what happened during the 8th National Assembly inauguration should be a lesson to political party leaders in the country.
He said such leaders who most times want to impose leadership on national and state assemblies should rethink.
“This is not the first time National Assembly members dump party approved candidates.
“The same scenario played out in 2011 when House of Representatives member ignored PDP preferred candidates and elected Aminu Tambuwal and Emeka Ihedioha, as Speaker and Deputy Speaker, respectively.
“I will advice aggrieved APC senators to accept what happened in the interest of peace, justice and democracy as they will achieve nothing in going to court.”
Asogwa, however, advised the APC national leadership to use appropriate party laws to discipline erring members it found guilty of involving in anti-party activities or disobeying party leadership.
“The party can discipline erring party member but should be careful in ‘wielding that big stick’ to avoid creating more factions and overheating the party polity,” Asogwa said.
He advised APC to allow the `sleeping dog to lie’ in order not to create more problems for Mr President as well as the party.