The Lagos High Court, in Ikeja has ordered the Lagos State
House of Assembly to halt probe of former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode pending the
determination of the case filed by the former governor against the Assembly.
The court adjourned the matter brought before it by Ambode,
against the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa in
connection with the ongoing probe of procurement of 820 buses by Ambode’s
administration.
Justice Adesanya adjourned till 20th of November, 2019 for
the respondents in the matter to respond to the plaintiff’s application.
Adesanya had on 29th, October 2019 ordered the Speaker and
some members of State House of Assembly to appear before the court after
hearing a motion ex-parte moved by Ambode’s lawyer, Tayo Oyetibo (SAN).
Other defendants are the Clerk of the House, A. A. Sanni,
who signed the newspaper ads, inviting Ambode to the House by 2pm; Chairman of
the Ad hoc Committee set up by the House to probe the procurement, Fatai
Mojeed; and members of the Committee: Gbolahan Yishawu, A. A. Yusuff, Yinka
Ogundimu, Mojisola Lasbat Meranda, M. L. Makinde, Kehinde Joseph, T. A. Adewale
and O. S.
The lead counsel to the respondents, Mrs. Adenike Oshinowo
prayed the court to give them time to respond to the application because it was
received late.
“We were served the notice very late yesterday and we shall
be opposing the application and we are asking for a date,” she said.
Following the adjournment, Justice Adesanya, also ordered
the parties to maintain the status quo pending the outcome of the case.
The former Governor had instituted a suit against the
Assembly to contest the constitutionality of the probe of the buses which were
procured based on budgetary approval as part of the Bus Reform Project of the
State Government designed to revolutionize public transportation.
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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