Al Makura Survives, Panel Dismisses Impeachment Allegations

Governor Al-Makura

• We have been vindicated, says APC • Assembly insists on removing governor
Tobi Soniyi, George Okoh , Onyebuchi Ezigbo and Adebiyi Adedapo

Some relief came the way of embattled Nasarawa State Governor, Alhaji Tanko Al-Makura, yesterday when the investigative panel set up by the Nasarawa State Chief Judge, Justice Suleiman Dikko, to investigate the 16-count allegation of misconduct and breaches of the constitution levelled against him were dismissed by the panel.

The panel chose to dismiss the allegations following the failure of the state’s House of Assembly to provide evidence in support of the claims.

The chairman of the panel, Yusuf Shehu Usman, said the House did not present “any iota of evidence” in support of the 16 allegations against the governor.

Usman said: “Having considered and dismissed each allegation for lack of proof, having found no merit in the allegations, the panel hereby dismisses all the allegations.

“In accordance with the constitution, the panel will send its report to the Nasarawa State House of Assembly.”

The panel held that in criminal proceedings, the onus lies on the person who has made the allegations to prove culpability and that since the state’s lawmakers had failed to prove the allegations, the panel had no choice but to dismiss the allegations.

It also held that in civil cases, the onus to prove was on the person who would lose if no evidence was led and that since the House of Assembly failed to adduce evidence in support of the allegation, the house stood to lose.

It agreed with the submission of the counsel to the governor, Chief Noruka Udechukwu (SAN), that having satisfied itself with the evidence that the House of Assembly was served with the notice of hearing, the panel had no choice but to dismiss the allegations in its entirety.

The panel chairman said: “Having failed to lead evidence, the panel hereby dismisses the allegations.

“It is the House of Assembly that by a motion asked the chief judge to set up a panel to investigate the allegations contained in the impeachment notice. The chief judge complied. The panel was set up. The panel then gave the House a hearing notice. It failed to appear.

“The panel, observing the principle of fair hearing adjourned the sitting and ordered that a fresh hearing be served on the house. But today, the House then appeared but it was to register its protest on the content of the investigative panel.”

The panel noted that the house raised serious allegations of breaches of the constitution by the governor, in setting up the panel.
“But the issues raised by the House are beyond our mandate. We therefore refrain from determining them. They can only be determined by a court of law,” the panel added.

In reviewing its earlier position to boycott the panel, the counsel to the lawmakers, Mr. Ocha Ulegede, said he came to appear in protest. He came with five other lawyers.

The panel had on Monday ordered that the lawmakers be served with a fresh hearing notice after they failed to appear to substantiate the 16 allegations levelled against the governor.

When they appeared, the lawmakers’ lawyers protested the inclusion of two-card carrying members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and a civil servant as members of the investigative panel.

According to their lawyer, “We have evidence that Alhaji Muhammad Sambo Keana and Alhaji Abdulahi Usman Galadima are registered members of the PDP, while Reverend Joel Galadima, also a member of the panel, is a public servant who and still received a salary as at July.”

Citing Section 188(5) of the constitution, Ulegede said the chief judge failed to comply with the provisions of the constitution in setting up the panel, adding that the CJ's power was not absolute.

He said the constitution excluded three categories of people for the membership of such a panel. They are: members of the public service, members of the legislature and members of political parties.

He pointed out that even though the inclusion of two PDP members was to the advantage of the House, he held that the House refused to capitalise on it because it would violate the constitution.

Ulegede also said the panel lacked the power to prepare its rules of procedure, adding that only the state's House of Assembly had the power to do so under the constitution.
He therefore argued that everything done pursuant to the illegal rules of procedure amounted to a nullity.

He said: “Based on these grounds, we have decided not to take part in the proceedings. We hereby apply to take our leave.”

But the panel chairman prevailed on him to wait and hear out the other party.
Usman also told him to go to court if he was not satisfied with the composition of the panel, adding that members of the panel lacked the power to dissolve the panel.

He said: “We don't have the power to determine the issues you raised. These are issues that should be canvassed before a court of law. Nevertheless, we have taken note of your submissions.

“But as a member of the learned profession, you know it is unethical to take your leave without listening to what the learned counsel on the other side has to say.”

However, the counsel to the governor, supported by Ms. Olufunke Aboyade (SAN) and Professor Ernest Ojukwu, said they did not object to Ulegede taking his leave.

At that point, the counsel to the lawmakers left the hall where the panel was sitting.
The panel then called on the counsel to the governor to address it in view of the fact that the House said it would no longer take part in the panel's sitting.

Addressing the panel, Udechukwu asked the panel to dismiss the notice of impeachment in the circumstances.

He argued that what the lawmakers did amounted to abandonment of the impeachment notice and the allegations against the governor.

He said the House ought to have produced the rules of procedures for the panel even before calling on the CJ to constitute the investigating panel. This, he said, was not done.
According to him, failure of the House to produce the rules of procedures for the panel had rendered the proof of the allegations in the impeachment notice impossible.

He said: “Section 188(8) enjoins you to make a report to the House that the allegation has not been proved. I urge you to submit in that report that the allegations have not been proved.”

Reacting to the decision of the panel to dismiss the allegations against the governor, his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), hailed the panel’s position on the governor's innocence.

While backing the position of the panel, the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Alhaji Lai Muhammed, blamed the impeachment drama on the desperation by the PDP to weaken members of the opposition.

Muhammed, who spoke to THISDAY on the telephone yesterday evening, expressed the resolve of the APC to overcome all challenges on its way.

“I think we have been vindicated on our stand that the governor is innocent of the allegations and that the entire exercise was a political witch-haunt by the PDP as part of its grand plan to weaken the opposition in the country,” he said.

But despite the decision of the investigative panel to dismiss the allegations, members of the state's House of Assembly vowed yesterday to proceed with the impeachment process.

The chairman, House Committee on Information and Security, Hon. Muhammed Baba Ibaku, who in the company of other house members spoke to reporters in Abuja, saying the House would make its position known in due course.

“We will not act outside the constitution, we will make our decision known soon,” he said.
Ibaku, who said the House had expressed reservation about the membership of the panel and advised that the panel be disbanded, explained that a legal team on behalf of the House appeared before the panel to make their position known.

When pointedly asked if the House would continue with the impeachment process, Ibaku said: “As far as we are concerned, he has been impeached, but until we get there.”

Ibaku explained that the panel couldn’t have investigated allegations against the governor, since it was not provided with the guidelines by the House of Assembly.

He also said the panel lacked the legal capacity to divulge its findings to the public, as he said reports of the investigation ought to be sent to the House for consideration.

“Section 188 (7) of the constitution stipulates that the House of Assembly should provide them with the guidelines, but because of our reservations, they went ahead to formulate the guidelines for themselves in their own wisdom. If seven people can formulate the guidelines, what do you think 20 people can do?” he asked.

He however said the assembly members would not seek redress in court, noting that the constitution allows for legislators to carry out an impeachment process without the interference of the court.

“We don't have the space to go to court, the constitution has laid down rules for this process. The constitution even states that the court should not interfere with our processes,” he stated.

When asked if they would take any action against the chief judge, Ibaku said: “We are not joining issues with the CJ, he knows the law and he knows what he has done. We want to deal with the governor strictly, whoever failed to do his work will be properly guided by the law.”