By Tony Osauzo, Benin
A former Chief Press Secretary to Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, Mr John Mayaki, has urged all impeached Local Government Council Chairmen in the state to challenge their impeachment in court rather than causing disturbances in the state.
Speaking to newsmen in Benin City, Mayaki cautioned the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state against making inflammatory statements that could escalate political tensions in Edo. He added, “No amount of cheap blackmail or campaign of calumny will stop the governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, from doing the right thing.
“If the legislators at the local government councils decide to impeach their council chairmen, how does that concern the governor? The councillors are PDP members, just like the council chairmen, while the governor belongs to the All Progressives Congress (APC). The governor has no authority over the legislators in the 18 local government councils of the state and cannot prevent them from exercising their constitutional rights.
“Local government councils, like their counterparts in higher legislative bodies such as State Houses of Assembly and the National Assembly, have the constitutional authority to impeach their chairmen; it’s constitutionally guaranteed.
“I advise all impeached council chairmen to contest their impeachment in courts of competent jurisdiction. That is the appropriate course of action at this time. They should stop causing disturbances and heating up the polity.
“Going around and making careless statements is capable of bringing anarchy to the state. Our governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, is already transforming the state into a construction site, leading a peaceful state, doing wonders, and putting smiles on the faces of the people.
“The PDP should know that no amount of blackmail will slow down the governor or reverse the wheel of progress. Governor Monday Okpebholo has a divine mandate, and no amount of campaign of calumny can distract him from focusing on his mandate of development,” Mayaki added.