The Edo State House of Assembly has launched the impeachment process against the Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu, according to reports.
The petition to impeach the deputy governor was formally presented during a plenary session of the house held on Wednesday, marking a significant escalation in the political landscape of the state.
Charity Aiguobarueghian, the Majority Leader, took the floor to read the impeachment petition, revealing that it had garnered the signatures of 21 out of 24 members of the assembly.
Aiguobarueghian emphasized that the petition, dated March 5, 2024, surpassed the two-thirds majority requirement stipulated in Section 188 (2a) of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The Speaker of the House, Blessing Agbebaku, acknowledged the receipt of the petition, divulging that it was predicated on undisclosed grounds.
Despite the secrecy surrounding the allegations, the assembly accorded the deputy governor a seven-day window to provide a formal response to the petition.
With procedural diligence, the Speaker instructed the clerk of the house, Yahaya Omogbai, to serve the impeachment notice on Shaibu, thereby initiating a legal process that could have far-reaching implications for the state’s political landscape.
Speculation abounds regarding the motives behind Shaibu’s impeachment notice, with many observers linking it to the simmering tensions between him and the state Governor, Godwin Obaseki.
These tensions reached a boiling point during the recently concluded Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial election primaries in the state, where Shaibu faced significant setbacks.
Shaibu, in a preemptive move, had earlier voiced concerns about a purported plot to remove him from office, attributing the alleged scheme to his gubernatorial ambitions.
His election as the PDP candidate in a parallel primary held at his residence in Benin City further exacerbated tensions within the party, contrasting with the outcome of another primary exercise held at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, which declared Asue Ighodalo as the winner.
As the specter of impeachment looms over Shaibu, the political landscape of Edo State braces for upheaval, with the unfolding drama poised to reshape the contours of power and influence within the state’s corridors of governance.
