Governor Umaru Al-Makura of Nasarawa State on Sunday said those who killed the head driver of the state Government House, Abdullahi Mairuwa, “will not go scot free”.
Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-Makura
Mr. Al-Makura gave the assurance when he stopped over at the spot where the deceased was shot to death by yet to be identified gunmen.
The governor decried the incessant killings and attacks along Lafia-Obi-Keana road and pledged to beef up security in the area.
The governor, who visited Keana to commiserate with the family of the deceased, was received by the traditional chief of the area and the senator representing the constituency.
Mr. Al-Makura described the death as unfortunate and a great loss to the state. He urged the family to regard the incident as an act of God, as no mortal would live beyond the time destined by God.
The governor urged the people of the state to always be their brother’s keeper, and be patient with one another.
The late Mairuwa, aged 57, died as a result of gun wounds he sustained after he was attacked by gunmen on his way to Keana from Lafia on Friday.
His family say they believe he was targeted for assassination as he was the only one shot and killed among the four occupants of the car.
The Governor of Nasarawa State, Tanko Al – Makura, has said that the All Progressives Congress, APC, is not complete without the input of the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, and one of the party’s presidential aspirants.
Tanko Al-Makura, Nasarawa State Governor
Mr. Al-Makura spoke when the former vice president paid a courtesy visit to the Government House, Lafia.
He said Atiku coming into the APC added value and gave a sign of direction to the party.
Mr. Almakura referred to Atiku as “quality material” and an achiever who would soon be at the helm of affairs.
“No caucus, executive meeting of the party ends perfectly without the Turaki. APC has arrived and eventually has eminent qualified persons that will lead us,” he said.
He urged all presidential aspirants of the party to come together and pick a consensus candidate among them to avoid friction.
Atiku said that Mr. Al-Makura has positively developed Nasarawa State and deserved a second tenure to consolidate on his achievements.
He said that all the APC states across the country have performed better than their PDP counterpart and urged the people of the state to give Mr. Al-Makura another mandate to continue his good works.
“APC states have done better than PDP because they have monumental achievement for all sectors that have direct bearing on the lives of the people,” he said.
Lafia – The Police in Nasarawa said on Saturday that some gunmen assassinated Mr Abdullahi Mairuwa, the Head Driver of Gov. Umaru Al-Makura of the state.
ASP Ismaila Numan, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lafia.
He said the victim was traveling with his wife from Lafia to Keana Local Government Area on Saturday morning when they were attacked by some gunmen at Tudun Adabu village in Obi Local Government Area of the state.
“The report we got from the scene indicated that Mairuwa’s killers shot him at close range in the presence of his wife before escaping through a bush path,’’ Numan said.
Numan said detectives had been deployed to investigate the killing.
Meanwhile, a family source, who preferred anonymity, told NAN that the gun men had told the victim’s wife not to panic as they were sent to her husband alone, whom they shot twice in the chest.
He said the remains of Mairuwa had been taken to Keana for burial according to Islamic rites.
NAN reports that neither Gov. Al-Makura nor his Director of Press, Yakubu Lamai, could be reached for comments as at the time of this report. (NAN)
The panel set up to investigate the 16 allegations of gross misconduct leveled against Governor Tanko Al-Makura by the Nasarawa State House of Assembly on Tuesday dismissed the allegations for want of evidence.
Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-Makura
The Chairman of the panel, Yusuf Usman, during the proceeding of the panel in Lafia, said the Assembly failed to appear before it to prove its allegations.
He said the panel, therefore, had no choice than to dismiss the allegations.
Usman said the panel had, at the Monday sitting, given a grace of 24 hours to the House of Assembly to appear before it and substantiate its case.
He also drew attention to the appearance of counsel for the Assembly, led by Mr. Ocha Ulegede, on Tuesday.
He said during the counsel’s appearance, it faulted the sitting of the panel on composition grounds.
Usman, therefore, said the refusal of the Assembly to participate in the proceedings implied that it had failed to tender evidence to prove its case.
He said, “The rule of natural justice and our criminal laws put the onus of proof on the complainant, and failure of which the accused is deemed innocent.
“The House has failed to advance evidence on the 16 allegations. The panel agrees with the prayer of the counsel for the governor.
“It has no option than to dismiss each and every of the charges against the governor.”
He said the panel, in compliance with section 188, sub section 8 of the Constitution, would transmit its decision to the state House of Assembly.
Earlier, Ulegede had told the panel that he was appearing before the panel in protest.
He argued that the state Chief Judge, Justice Suleiman Dikko, failed to comply with the provision of section 188 (5) of the 1999 Constitution as amended in raising the panel.
Ulegede alleged that two members of the panel were card carrying members of the Peoples Democratic Party while another is a public servant.
He contended that this contravened the constitutional provision on the subject matter.
He also said the guidelines used by the panel were wrong as the constitution provided that the rules of proceeding should come from the Assembly.
“The panel has no power to have sat and even set rules.
“Its action was in breach of the constitution and panel should be disbanded on the ground of morality,” he said.
He contended that members of the Assembly would not participate in the panel’s proceedings until the constitutional breaches were addressed.
Reacting to Ulegede’s position, Usman said the panel had no power to take decision on the issues raised by Ulegede, pointing out that such decisions could only be handled by the court.
Counsel for Al-Makura, Chief Nnoruka Udechukwu, had prayed the panel to dismiss the allegations on the notice of impeachment in compliance with section 7 (c) of the panel guidelines.
Udechukwu noted that there was no proof and acknowledgement of service of the hearing notice on his client.
He, however, said the refusal by the Assembly to participate in the proceeding implied the abandonment of the allegation.
The move to remove Governor Tanko Al-Makura of Nasarawa State has continued to pit the Peoples Democratic Party-dominated House of Assembly against the anti-impeachment group, Fisayo Falodi writes
The All Progressives Congress has been preoccupied with the task of stopping the perceived move by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party to remove state governors under its control.
Tanko Al-Makura, Nasarawa State Governor
Pundits believe the Presidency might have orchestrated the impeachment of APC governors in order to weaken the party ahead of the next year general elections.
The APC, which has woken up to the realities of recent impeachment of Murtala Nyako as the governor of Adamawa State for gross misconduct by members of the state House of Assembly, has resolved to stop the plot by Nasarawa State lawmakers to remove Governor Tanko Al-Makura.
Al-Makura was elected on the platform of the defunct Congress of Progressive Change during the 2011 general elections before the party merged with others to form APC.
The Nasarawa State House of Assembly had levelled 16 charges bordering on official misconduct against Al-Makura. The lawmakers had ordered that the governor should be served an impeachment notice signed by 20 of its 24 members.
One of the charges raised against Al-Makura was the missing Local Government Joint Account Funds between June 2011 and April 2012 and from January to July 2013.
The lawmakers also alleged that the governor misappropriated and misapplied funds in the joint account and Local Government Sure-P Fund. He was also accused of transferring local government SURE-P fund to a fixed deposit account.
According to the lawmakers, the offences violated Section 162 (7 and 8) of the 1999 Constitution.
But the governor described the allegation as hoaxes. He said in spite of the allegations against him by the PDP-dominated members of the House, he could not be classified as a corrupt leader.
He said contrary to the report widely publicised by the House, he had yet to be served with the impeachment notice.
Al-makura had said, “It is not true to assume or claim that I had received the impeachment notice from the House of Assembly.
“In as much as I would not like to join issues with the House of Assembly on the pages of newspapers, I would comply with Section 188 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended.”
But sensing that the Nasarawa lawmakers may carry out their impeachment threat against Al-Makura as Adamawa legislators did to Nyako, the APC leadership, however, vowed to put up a hard fight against the PDP to stop perceived plan by the Presidency to remove three more governors on its platform.
The APC National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who said Nyako’s impeachment was a sad commentary on the character of the lawmakers behind it, alleged that some members of the state House of Assembly were induced with huge amount of money to fast-track the removal.
He said “All we can do is to take the matter to the court of public opinion as we have done. This country belongs to all of us; we are going to use every legal and constitutional means available to us to stop this invasion of our constitution.
“We have in recent times drawn the attention of Nigerians and friends of the country to this menace and the likely consequences.
“We are challenging some of these actions in court. What is more worrisome to us is that even when you win in court, they treat it with levity.”
But the Deputy Majority Leader of the House, Mr. Adamu Kamale, countered the allegation and challenged anyone who had any evidence of wrongdoing against the lawmakers to make it public.
He said, “Are they saying the 20 allegations levelled against the former governor are not true?
“If what we are saying that he diverted a huge amount of money belonging to Adamawa State for personal use is untrue, are they also saying that it is not true, that he drafted his family and friends into the affairs of government? Why did the former governor not appear before the panel to defend himself? Let them answer these questions.”
To, however, prevent the impending embarrassment staring it in the face as regards the impeachment plot against Al-Makura, the APC leadership last week held a secret meeting in Abuja where it strategised on how to stop the governor’s removal. The meeting was said to have resolved to build robust support for the governor as well as hire a team of competent lawyers to prevent the impeachment.
Despite the APC meeting and interference by some traditional rulers, the Nasarawa lawmakers insisted on Al-Makura’s removal as they vowed not to enter into any negotiation with anyone or group of people over the impeachment notice already served on the governor. The lawmakers even demonstrated their determination further by threatening to protest traditional rulers’ interference in the saga.
The Chairman of the state House Committee on Information and Security, Baba Ibaku, had said, “We have started this. We cannot go back, no matter the involvement of the chairman of traditional rulers.”
He had said any intervention by the traditional rulers would not prevent the lawmakers from carrying out their constitutional duty.
Another member of the state House of Assembly, Mohammed Okpede, who represents Doma South Constituency, dismissed allegation that the lawmakers were bribed with N200m each to impeach the governor.
Okpede had said, “The allegation was false. We are counting days; we started about five days ago and when the time reaches, we will respond appropriately.
“We have the number of days stipulated in the constitution and as soon as the time reaches, we will just go back to the chamber and direct the state Chief Judge to set up a committee of inquiry for the governor to appear.”
Al-Makura, who had seen the lawmakers’ determination to remove him, quickly moved to Abuja to meet with President Goodluck Jonathan so as to stop the impeachment. Sources said issue concerning the planned impeachment was basically discussed at the meeting.
The question now being asked by pundits is: Will the APC succeed in saving Al-Makura from being impeached, despite the party’s determination to use legal and constitutional means available to stop the move?
The state Chairman of APC, Philip Shekwo, readily provided the answer. He told Saturday PUNCH in a telephone interview that the people were not in support of the impeachment plot.
He said, “The people will continue to mobilise support for Al-Makura. The traditional rulers too are still intervening. So, all the allegations raised against the governor by the lawmakers are false.
“Governor Al-Makura has performed well. In the history of Nasarawa State, no governor has performed like the administration of Al-Makura. That is why people are rising to support him.
“The members of the state House of Assembly threatening to impeach the governor are pursuing an unpopular agenda. The lawmakers are representatives of the people, so we are calling on them to shelve the idea in the interest of the state.
“Nasarawa State is bigger than anybody or group of people, that is why we will continue to call on the lawmakers to consider their stand in the interest of the state.”
To anti-Al-Makura’s lawmakers, no amount of intervention would stop them from going ahead with the governor’s removal.
However, there are indications that the lawmakers are not ready to back down on their plot to remove the governor. A reliable source in the House of Assembly told our correspondent on condition of anonymity that the lawmakers had vowed to resist attempts by stakeholders, especially traditional rulers, to intervene.
The source said, “With the way the lawmakers are going about the plot to impeach Governor Al-Makura, he will need to pray hard to seek God’s intervention. All the lawmakers have been resisting plans by stakeholders to intervene in the impeachment saga. So, the impeachment can be carried out any moment from now. As things are now, Al-Makura’s fate is hanging.”
To demonstrate that they are serious about the impeachment plot, the lawmakers ordered the state Chief Judge, Justice Sulaiman Dikko, to set up a panel to probe the alleged gross misconduct and abuse of office levelled against the governor, but the panel has yet to begin sitting when the lawmakers rose to challenge its composition. The lawmakers are claiming the probe panel members were political office holders and called for their dissolution.
But from the way the scenario is going, it appears that Al-Makura may survive the impeachment plot as a crisis of confidence bordering on alleged partisanship and partiality has hit the seven-man panel.
Al-Makura has, however, carried the battle to frustrate the impeachment plot further by hiring seven Senior Advocates of Nigeria to defend him before the panel when it begins the investigation. The lawyers, sources said, had met with the governor on how to handle the defence.
The presence of the lawyers has confirmed claim by Al-Makura’s Special Adviser on Public Affairs, Abdulhamid Kwarra, that the governor was putting everything together to appear before the panel at the appropriate time to defend himself.
LAFIA — There was drama at the Nasarawa State House of Assembly, yesterday, when four members of the Assembly tried to snatch the mace to stall the adoption of the motion asking the state Chief Judge to constitute a seven-man panel to probe allegations of gross misconduct against Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura.
This was even as heavily armed policemen and Armored Personnel Carriers were stationed at strategic places as well as within the Assembly premises and the road leading to it.
However, members of the House, who met for 20 minutes later, directed the state Chief Judge, Justice Suleiman Dikko to constitute a seven-man investigative panel to probe allegations of gross misconduct levelled against Governor Umaru Al-Makura.
The motion asking Justice Dikko to set up the panel was moved by the Majority Leader of the House, Godiya Akwashiki (PDP- Udege/Loko) in line with the provision of the 1999 Constitution as amended and seconded by Mohammed Baba-Ibaku (PDP- Nasarawa Eggon West).
When the motion was put into vote by the Speaker, Musa Ahmed, 20 of the 24 members voted in favour, while the four APC lawmakers opposed it.
The House, thereafter, directed the Clerk of the Assembly, Mr Ego Maikeffi, to urgently communicate its decision to the Chief Judge, pointing out that the panel has one week to submit its report.
Meanwhile, the protests against Al-Makura’s planned impeachment which erupted in several parts of the state, following the announcement about two weeks ago has fizzled out with the residents now anxiously awaiting the outcome of the impeachment moves.
This came as the Senior Special Assistant to the governor on Public Affairs, Malam Abdulhamid Kwarra, has insisted that Al-Makura was yet to be served with the ‘purported’ impeachment notice, assuring that Al-Makura would respond appropriately as soon as he received the notice.
