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• Blames Adoke for not writing him to vacate seat
Former federal Commissioner for Information, Chief Edwin Clark, has hit out at the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) for failing in his duties by not writing the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal to vacate his seat after defecting to the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Ijaw leader, who said he would not recognise Tambuwal as Speaker of the House of Representatives in view of the provisions of Section 68(1) (g) of the constitution wondered why the AGF was finding it difficult to write the Speaker to vacate his seat.
Clark, who blamed the police for the use of teargas on lawmakers at the National Assembly, equally blamed the lawmakers for scaling the fence, saying they behaved like armed robbers.
The octogenarian, who spoke to newsmen yesterday in Abuja, condemned in strong terms the hate campaign by some politicians ahead of the 2015 general elections, stressing that they were capable of further aggravating the existing tension in the country.
While reacting to the statement credited to Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State that he will crush all the cockroaches in his state [opposition parties], Clark who is also a chieftain of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] described it as condemnable.
On the alleged statement by Governor Rotimi Amaechi for the setting up of a parallel government should the PDP win the 2015 general elections; Chief Clark
said the statement was unfortunate warning that politicians should allow the people to freely choose their leaders and not to overheat the polity.
He also stressed that the constitution and the relevant electoral laws have provided safety catch for any disputes that might emerged from the elections.
“The statement of Shema is also condemnable. Politics of bitterness must be stopped because it is not healthy for our democracy.”
On Ameachi, he “with all seriousness and sense of responsibility and patriotism, I state that alternative, or parallel, government is treasonable!”
He therefore warned that “political gladiators should allow the Nigeria people decide in 2015.
He added: “”the 1999 constitution of Nigeria, the Electoral Act and the Judiciary provide adequate safe-guards and measures to be taken by any aggrieved person, nor group, before and after election.”
On the recent invasion of the National Assembly by the police, Clark said the use of the teargas was very unfortunate. He stressed that “the police should have restricted themselves to the searching.”
On the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal the PDP Chieftain said the speaker has lost his position the day he decided to join another political party.
The elder statesman who backed up his argument with section 68 of the 1999 constitution said since there was no division in the party at the time the Speaker defected, he ceased to be a member of the House.
On the jumping of the fence, Clark said the lawmakers should have turned back or subject themselves to the searching been carried out by the police; explaining that “If anyone had died, a new dimension would have been introduced to the controversy. They behaved like armed robbers. They should have turned back.”
He added, “I will not refer to him as speaker because Section 68(1) (g) said he should vacate his seat. He lost his seat when he moved from PDP to APC.
“Adoke has been writing letters to state governors who have been sacked by the courts to vacate office and handover to new ones, why has Adoke not written to the Speaker to vacate his seat? It is unfortunate. We are equal in this country. Certain persons believed the country belong to them, we will never allow that.”
Source: Sun
