By Baron Ike
The deputy governor of Imo State, Eze Madumere was on Tuesday served with an impeachment notice by the Imo State House of Assembly.
It was also on the same day the state’s lawmakers commenced his impeachment proceedings even before he was served the notice.
Madumere has however reacted to the allegations contained in the notice sent to his office, saying they were not only spurious but in bad faith.
By parliamentary procedure for impeachment, Madumere ought to have been given the notice of impeachment to enable him put forward his defence before any discussion on impeachment takes place.
Unfortunately, the process of his impeachment was already underway when the deputy governor received the list of charges leveled against him.
A six-man committee headed by member, representing Obowo LGA, Kennedy Ibe, was set up to probe the allegations and report back to the House within seven days.
A statement on Tuesday by Madumere’s media aide, Uche Onwuchekwa said the impeachment notice contained the list of constitutional infractions allegedly committed by the deputy governor.
They include: absence from duty for three months, failure to attend constitutionally mandated proceedings of the State Executive Council and refusal to attend constitutional mandated proceedings of the State Security Council.
Other constitutional breaches of the deputy governor, according to the impeachment notice also include; refusal to attend and to hold meetings with the Governor and Commissioners of the Government of Imo State for the governance of Imo State made compulsory by and under S.193 (2) of the 1999 Constitution and concealment of felonious conduct affecting the presentation of self as eligible candidate of Office of Deputy Governor, Imo State, having been convicted and imprisoned for theft in the United States of America.
Onwuchekwa however dismissed all four breaches leveled against his boss.
On the first claim that Madumere was absent from duty for three months, Onwuchekwa said the facts proved the opposite.
According to him, the boss who is saddled with the responsibilities of superintending Boundary Commission, had been so busy, especially in resolving boundary disputes in Umuoma of Ihitte-Uboma local government, Ihube of Okigwe local government among other flash-point communities within and outside the state.
The statement read: “His Excellency also participated in one day retreat for Stakeholders in the management of Nigeria boundaries, which held in the Airforce Conference Center, Abuja in the company of the Surveyor General of the State and the Principal Secretary to the Deputy Governor.”
On the allegation that the deputy governor refused to attend Constitutionally mandated proceedings of the State Executive Council (SEC) the statement also said it cannot stand any administrative scrutiny.
He explained:“There are laid down procedures through which a Deputy Governor or any member of the executive Council can be invited for Executive council meeting. We hereby state that the Deputy Governor has never been invited for such meetings through either a memo or any official notices and thereby cannot stand against the deputy governor.”
Regarding Madumere’s alleged refusal to hold meetings with Governor Rochas Okorocha, Onwuchekwa said nothing could be more trivial, insisting that,“The Deputy Governor cannot force himself on the Governor especially when he has been tagged a pariah in the Government circle.”
He explained: “We state here that Governor Okorocha has never created such opportunity to meet with the Deputy Governor to discuss the programmes and activities of the Government other than the ones we embarrassingly hear by the road side and other sources. To this extent, where the Deputy Governor’s inputs are needed, there are right procedures through which he could be reached either through his Principal secretary and other principal officers or directly to the Deputy Governor.
“The most embarrassing among the spurious allegations is the annoying allegation of concealment of felonious conduct affecting the presentation of self as eligible candidate of office of Deputy Governor of Imo State. This is not only astonishing but an extreme show of lack of due diligence. The Deputy Governor of Imo State, Prince Eze Madumere has never been convicted of any civil matter let alone a criminal matter.
“We are pained to state that two times the Deputy Governor had to go through the pains of losing his freedom in detention were all in the course of saving Owelle Rochas Okorocha from public disgrace. He rather had to carry Okorocha’s cross and bore his shame. It will be recalled that Prince Madumere shortly after Achike Udenwa’s victory at the polls in 1999 where he had to face contempt of Court for failure to make it to the court. He was in detention in the United States for about one month all because he was delayed by Governor Okorocha. To the glory of God, Prince Madumere was acquitted of all allegations. We also challenge the members of the House of Assembly to produce the verdicts of the court that convicted Prince Madumere.
“The second time he had to stoop low so that Governor Okorocha may be spared of the humiliation of getting incarcerated was on the eve of 2011 Gubernatorial elections. Prince Madumere again yielded and was detained for almost two months on phony charges, which he has also been absolved of all charges.”
In commencing the impeachment proceeding against Madumere on Tuesday, July 10, the day the Imo State House of Assembly served him impeachment notice, the Deputy Speaker, Ugonna Ozuruigbo, moved a motion that the impeachment process be served on the deputy governor, accusing him, among other things, of abandoning his duties and office as the state’s number two citizen for a long time.
Attempt by the lawmaker representing Oru West LGA, Donatus Onuigwe, to oppose the impeachment proceedings, was rebuffed when he was immediately suspended by the Speaker.
Armed security men had barricaded the entry and exit points of the complex.
The Speaker, Acho Ihim, said that the petition met and surpassed the required one-third as provided for in Section 188 (2) 11 of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
The Im State House of Assembly is made up of 27 members, but four members sympathetic to Madumere were, penultimate weekend, suspended for “unpaliamentary conduct,” paving the way for the impeachment proceedings against the deputy governor.
Okorocha recently fell out with Madumere when the latter indicated interest in succeeding him in 2019.