In an interesting turn of events, following the alleged impeachment of Rt Hon Ayuba Abok as Speaker, Plateau State House of Assembly in the early hours of Thursday 28th October 2021, Lawmakers of the Plateau State House of Assembly have reportedly suspended six members of the state assembly for gross misconduct, insubordination and legislative rascality.
The supposed impeached Speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly, Hon Abok Ayuba on Thursday set up a parallel house of assembly and sanctioned the members who spearheaded his impeachment.
Ayuba who presided over a plenary with the maze outside the premises of the State Assembly, alongside 13 other members of the House, cutting across party lines upheld a motion raised by the Deputy Majority Leader of the Assembly, Philip Dasun and seconded by the Minority Leader, Peter Gyendeng to suspend the six members.
Those suspended are the Deputy Speaker, Saleh Yipmong, Majority Leader, Na’anlong Daniel, the new Speaker, Yakubu Sanda, former Deputy Speaker, Ibrahim Baba Hassan, Eric Dakogol, Abubakar Balo.
At the emergency sitting at the Zawan Community Association Hall in Jos, the members also passed a vote of confidence on the embattled Speaker, declaring that they stand for the truth, justice, the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, democracy and the people of the State.
Briefing journalists shortly after the sitting , the Chairman, House Committee on Information, Philip Dasun said, “The constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria makes a clear provision for the impeachment of the Speaker, it requires a 2/3 majority, we are 24, we are supposed to have a minimum of 16 members to sign and affirm the impeachment of the Speaker.
“To our greatest surprise, we were in the House today very early in the morning, we got an information that there an attempt to impeach our Speaker. I went and I found seven people and I was the eighth person before the rest came. We are not in agreement with what happened, the Governor is a lawyer, he knows the constitution, he will not accept that illegal process, if he does, it is left for him to battle with his profession.”
