Reinstate suspended Edo council chairmen

By Sunday Ani

Former Senior Special Assistant to former Governor Godwin Obaseki and Spokesman to Philip Shaibu, the former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Mr Benjamin Atu, has called on the Speaker and members of the Edo State House of Assembly to reinstate the suspended 18 local government chairmen in the state.

He charged the lawmakers to write their names in gold by ensuring that the legislature stood shoulder high above the executive in terms of learning, patriotism, soberness, honesty, and integrity by upholding the rule of law.

Atu, who was reacting to the withdrawal of the State House of Assembly and the Speaker, Hon. Blessing Agbebaku, in a suit filed against the council chairmen, stated that the Speaker and the State House of Assembly have taken the right decision and positioned themselves as a refuge for the masses rather than tools in the hands of today’s powerful men who have not considered the consequences of their actions and life after office.

According to him, Governor Monday Okpebholo illegally sacked the elected council chairmen in December after his assumption of office in November. The illegal removal of the Chairmen has sparked outrage from Nigerians who berated the Governor and condemned his action as anti democratic since the Supreme Court judgement and Nigeria’s Constitution supersede all other local or state laws.

He maintained that, in spite of the intervention of the AGF and the reversal of the purported suspension of the 18 council chairmen by various court declarations, the Governor has refused to comply with the court order, which stated that the status quo of restoring the elected chairmen be maintained.

In a statement, Atu said the Governor was strengthening hardship at the grassroots, as those selected currently as acting chairmen have deepened the economic challenges of the masses.

“A legal suit filed recently by the acting chairmen, where the State Assembly and the Speaker were included as claimants to dismiss a High Court judgement that prevented banks from recognising the acting chairmen was met with still resistance as both the State Assembly and the Speaker have distanced themselves from the said legal suit that was circulated across various news and social media platforms.

“In a swift response to the suit No. B/3405/2025, the Edo State House of Assembly and the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Blessing Agbebaku, through their lawyer R. O. Isenalumhe & CO, stated that their client, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, never instructed anyone to commence suit No. B/3405/2025 (Edo State House of Assembly and 2 ORS VS Hon. Newman Oghomwen Ugiagbe and ORS) in their names,” part of the statement read.

Atu commended the Speaker for displaying such a high sense of unity in his desire to restore the suspended chairmen and build a unified state.

He described the speaker’s withdrawal, through his lawyer and his demand for a written apology from the acting council chairmen in the state as the right step in the right direction to avoid similar public embarrassment to government institutions.

While thanking the Nigerian judiciary for their consistency in ensuring that elected chairmen are not thrown out of office, he also called on the State House of Assembly to uphold the tenet of the law by abiding by the supreme Court’s declaration which granted autonomy to council chairmen.

“I call on the State House of Assembly to toe the part of honour and patriotism by putting public interest above parochial considerations. It’s now time to call off the illegal suspension of the council chairmen to enable them continue with developing their various LGAs.

“The Supreme Court has ruled and granted autonomy to elected council chairmen, who are not outsiders but integral citizens of the state. We must exercise caution when tormenting others politically, because those who are not in your party today may become those on whom you rely tomorrow for political survival. All politicians live in a glass house, so they should therefore be cautious when throwing stones,” the statement added.