Edo Assembly: Lessons from the past

In this piece, Imman Ekpeneru examines the Edo state House of Assembly crisis and how it can be resolved.

The resolution of the Senate that Governor Godwin Obaseki should issue a fresh proclamation to re-inaugurate the Edo State House of Assembly is an interesting dimension to the political tussle.

It threw up a constitutional issue. The present 9th National Assembly has issued a directive to a governor.

It is also means that the National Assembly is superior to House of Assembly.

Indeed, the drama unfolding between the National Assembly and the 7th Edo State Assembly, besides the gapping constitutional issues, also raises the moral issue for the presiding officers of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The Edo State House of Assembly was inaugurated in the absence of some members-elect who were away when the other legislators who formed a quorum were inaugurated. The majority of the members were absent when Assembly was inaugurated on June 18, 2019.

Four years ago, a similar scenario played out in the Senate when the majority of the legislators opted to attend a meeting outside the National Assembly when the Senate was inaugurated.

Senator Ahmad Lawan who was one of those outside the chambers on realizing the reality of what had faced him ran back to the Senate chambers. By the time he returned to the Senate the inauguration was over.

He did not return to the meeting holding at the International Conference Centre. In fact, the meeting at the ICC broke up immediately and Senator Lawan and the majority of the senators went to the Senate chamber where the newly elected President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, superintended their inauguration.

It is the same scenario, albeit with assumed political hues that played out in Edo State.

Senator Lawan persevered in the Senate and he was lifted to the position of Senate Leader in the Eight Senate.

It was from there that he rose to his present position as President of the Senate.

President Muhammadu Buhari, despite the apparent political loss was not compelled to issue another proclamation for the inauguration that would bequeath an Assembly leadership favourable to him.

It is difficult to find a difference between what happened in Abuja and what happened in Benin.

One is now bound to question the rationale for the Instruction from the Senate and the House of Representatives to the governor of Edo State to issue a fresh proclamation.

Even the propriety of the federal legislature issuing a directive to a state governor is not envisaged in the constitution. The federal legislature issuing a directive to a House of Assembly is not envisaged.

The only window opened to the National Assembly to meddle in the affairs of lawmaking for a state is when the House of Assembly is not able to sit as stipulated in Section 11 (4) of the constitution.

However, Section 11 (5) of the same constitution says

“For the purpose of Sub Section 4 of this section, a House of Assembly shall not be deemed to be unable to perform its functions, so long as the House of Assembly can hold a meeting and transact business.”

It is understandable that advocates of the takeover of the Edo State House of Assembly continue to gloss over this defining provision of the constitution to satisfy their desire.

The Edo State House of Assembly, having been inaugurated on June 18, has continued to hold meetings and conduct the business of oversight over the executive arms of government.

As the Senate under Senator Saraki worked before all the members of the APC who went for the ICC meeting were inaugurated, the Edo House of Assembly is waiting for those who went to a hotel on June 18 to come for their inauguration.

The Senate and the House of Representatives have repeatedly adopted a knee-jerk response to the situation in the state. It is understandable, given the overwhelming influence Comrade Adams Oshiomhole played in enthroning the leadership of the present National Assembly.

However, the relationships between the different levels of government is strictly defined by the provisions of the constitution.