The Edo State House of Assembly has commenced proceedings to impeach the Deputy Governor, Phillip Shuaibu, for allegedly contravening laws of the state.
Shuaibu’s impeachment was said to have commenced after 21 out of the 24 lawmakers signed a petition to remove him from office.
The impeachment commenced on Wednesday after the majority leader and a member representing Ovia North-East, Charity Aiguobarueghian, moved a motion on the floor of the house during plenary that the deputy governor be impeached.
Apparently, the move was because of his insistence to contest for the 2024 governorship election in Edo against the wish of Governor Godwin Obaseki.
Aiguobarueghian, while moving the motion, said a petition dated 5 March against Shaibu, was signed by 21 of the 24 members of the legislature.
He added that the petition was based on perjury and the disclosure of government secrets.
Aiguobarueghian noted that the number of members who signed the petition was higher than two-thirds which is required by the constitution.
Speaker of the House, Blessing Agbebaku (PDP-Owan-West), who acknowledged receipt of the petition, directed the Clerk of the House, Yahaya Omogbai, to serve the impeachment notice on the deputy governor.
Agbebaku also gave the deputy governor seven days to respond to the notice of impeachment.
The move to impeach Shaibu is apparently because of his insistence to contest for the 2024 governorship election in Edo against the wish of Governor Godwin Obaseki, who prefers another aspirant, Asue Ighodalo, to succeed him as governor.
Ighodalo, a former banker, recently won the PDP governorship ticket in Edo while Shaibu, through a parallel primary election in which he was a lone candidate, claimed he was the rightful candidate of the party.
The deputy governor was a strong political ally of Governor Obaseki until his (Shaibu) governorship ambition created the feud between both of them.
