Former Lagos State Governor,
Akinwunmi Ambode has dragged the Lagos State House of Assembly to court over
its ongoing probe of the ex-governor for allegedly procuring 820 buses worth
over N7 billion without budgetary approval.
Ambode is due to appear before
the House Committee probing the allegation on Wednesday. The House had placed
adverts in some newspapers inviting the former governor to appear before it as
he was alleged to have previously failed to appear on two occasions when he was
invited.
However, the former Governor had
instituted a suit against the Assembly at the Lagos High Court in Ikeja to
contest the constitutionality of the probe of the buses which were procured by
his administration.
Based on the suit, the Lagos High
Court in Ikeja on Tuesday ordered the Speaker of the State House of Assembly,
Mudashiru Obasa to appear before it in connection with the ongoing probe of
procurement of 820 buses by Ambode.
In an order dated 29th October,
2019 issued by Justice Y.A Adesanya after hearing a motion ex-parte moved by
Ambode’s lawyer, Tayo Oyetibo (SAN), ordered the Speaker to appear before the
court at by 9am on Wednesday October 30.
Others to appear before the court
are the Clark of the House, Mr A.A Sanni; Chairman of the Ad hoc Committee set
up by the House to probe the procurement, Fatai Mojeed and members of the
Committee. They are Gbolahan Yishawu, A.A Yusuff, Yinka Ogundimu, Mojisola
Lasbat Meranda, M.L Makinde, Kehinde Joseph, T.A Adewale and O.S Afinni.
Justice Adesanya ordered the
originating processes and all the accompanying processes filed by the claimant
(Ambode) to be served on the defendants and subsequently fixed Wednesday,
October 30, 2019 for hearing of motion for interlocutory injunction.
According to his statement of claim
before the court, Ambode said contrary to deliberate misrepresentation of facts
by the lawmakers, the procurement of the 820 buses was well captured in the
2018 Appropriation Law which was duly approved by the House.
“In section 1 of the Bill, the 1st
Defendant (House of Assembly) authorized the total Budget for the year 2018 to
be One Trillion, Forty Six Billion, One Hundred and Twenty One Million, One
Hundred and Eighty-One Thousand, Six Hundred and Eighty Naira
(N1,046,121,181,680.00) comprising the sum of Three Hundred and Forty Seven
Billion, Thirty-Eighty Million, Nine Hundred and Thirty-Eight Thousand,
Eight-Hundred and Seventy-Two Naira (N347,038,938,872.00) only and Six Hundred
and Ninety-Nine Billion, Eighty-Two Million, Two Hundred and Forty-Two
Thousand, Eight Hundred and Eighty Naira (N699,082,242,808.00) only as the
Recurrent and Capital Expenditures respectively.
“Part of the items authorized by
the Bill under Capital Expenditure was: “LAGBUS Public Transport Infrastructure
(MEPB); Part financing of 820 buses” which was item 8 under schedule 1- Part C
of the Bill,” he said.
He added that having prescribed
the manner of withdrawal of funds in sections 3 and 4 of the 2018 Appropriation
Law, it was unconstitutional for the House to attach another condition in
section 9 of the law for further approval to be sought before incurring any
expenditure on the purchase of the buses.
Highlighting the specific breach
of his constitutional rights to fair hearing by the House, the former Governor
said on August 27, 2019 during proceedings of the Assembly, some lawmakers
thoroughly vilified and disparaged him as having purchased the buses without
budgetary approval and that the procurement was a waste of public funds, while
at the end of the proceedings, the House resolved to constitute an Ad Hoc
Committee to probe the procurement.
He said it was surprising that
the very lawmakers who contributed actively in vilifying, disparaging and
denigrating him constituted the bulk of the members of the Committee, which was
a clear derogation of his right to fair hearing.
Ambode added that in continuation
of deliberate misrepresentation of facts of the issue, the House falsely
claimed that an invitation had been extended to him to appear before the
Committee but that he failed to honour the said invitation.
“On Thursday 10th October, 2019,
the 4th and 5th Defendants (Mojeed and Yishawu) who are Chairman and member of
the Committee respectively set up by the 1st Defendant pursuant to the
provisions of section 129 of the Constitution again raised on the floor of the
House an allegation that the Claimant (Ambode) was invited to appear before the
Committee but that he failed to do so whereupon the 2nd Defendant (Speaker)
ruled that a warrant of arrest would be issued against the Claimant if he
refuses to appear before the Committee.
“The Claimant states that no
letter of invitation was delivered to him before the 4th and 5th Defendants
made the false allegation against the Claimant which was widely reported by
various national Newspapers in the country.
“Further to the foregoing
paragraphs, the 1st Defendant had also invited some of the former Commissioners
who served under my government to appear before the 1st Defendant on Tuesday
15th October 2019. These included former Commissioners for Energy, Agriculture
and Economic Planning and Budget respectively among others.
“After the proceedings of the
Committee on 15th October 2019, the 1st Defendant represented to the public
that the former Commissioners that appeared before it had indicted me in their
testimonies. The information was widely published by National newspapers on
Wednesday 16th October 2019.
“Contrary to the information made
to the public by the 1st Defendant, the said former Commissioners for Energy
and Economic Planning and Budget who were represented by the 1st Defendant to
have indicted me, made public statements on Thursday 17th October 2019 denying
that they ever indicted me in their testimonies before the Committee. The
denials were widely published by online newspapers on Thursday 17th October
2019 and national newspapers on Friday 18th October 2019.
“The 1st Defendant falsely
represented to the public that the said Commissioners indicted me in their
testimonies before the Committee so as to justify my indictment by the 1st
Defendant which indictment members of the 1st Defendant had hitherto threatened
to carry out,” Ambode averred.
He added that the House Committee
and indeed the entire members of the House had already adjudged him as having
committed wastage of public fund by the procurement of the buses in question
and had also already determined that the procurement was done by him as opposed
to the State Government.
He said it was obvious that the
lawmakers were totally biased against him having regard to their pronouncements
on the floor of the House by reason of which he believes that his right to fair
hearing as guaranteed by the Constitution had been seriously compromised by the
defendants.
He is, therefore, seeking among
others, the court’s declaration that the power of the House to pass a
resolution under section 128(1) of the Constitution to cause an inquiry into
his conduct as Governor is subject to right to fair hearing as guaranteed by
section 36(1) of the Constitution.
He also wants a declaration that
the Resolution of the House setting up a 9-Man Committee comprising of the
4th-12th Defendants to investigate all transactions in respect of the 820 Buses
said by the defendants to have been procured by him derogates from his right as
guaranteed by section 36(1) of the Constitution and therefore is
unconstitutional, null and void.
Other claims are: “A DECLARATION
that having regard to the provisions of sections 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the
Appropriation Law of Lagos State 2018, sections 8 and 9 of the Law which
required the approval of the House of Assembly of Lagos State before certain
expenditure of money is incurred by the Executive Branch of the State is not in
accord with any provision of the Constitution and accordingly is
unconstitutional, null and void.
“A DECLARATION that it is not
lawful for the Defendants to represent or continue to represent to the Public
that the Claimant, AKINWUNMI AMBODE, procured 820 buses in breach of budgetary
approval.
“A DECLARATION that the powers of
the 1st Defendant under sections 103, 128 and 129 of the Constitution of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended does not include power to indict
the Claimant as contemplated by sections 66(1)(h), 137(1)i and 182(1)i of the
Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended.
“AN INJUNCTION restraining the
Defendants whether by themselves, their servants, agents and or representatives
from compelling the Claimant, in any manner whatsoever, to appear before the
Defendants pursuant to the Resolution passed by the Defendants on 27th August
2019 or any other Resolution passed in respect of the subject matter of this
Suit.
“AN INJUNCTION restraining the
Defendants whether by themselves, their servants, agents and or representatives
from representing or continue to represent to the Public that the Claimant,
AKINWUNMI AMBODE, procured 820 buses in breach of budgetary approval.”
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