By Garba Mohammad
The Adamawa impeachment Saga took a new dimension on Monday as the state High Court dismissed application by the state lawmakers to substitute service of notice against the state governor Murtala Nyako and his deputy Bala James Ngillari, just as the legislators have chosen to public to publish notice of gross financial misconduct against the governor and his deputy.
The Acting Chief Judge of the state Justice Ambrose Mammadi,on Monday dismissed a application filled by the state House of Assembly to serve Governor Murtala Nyako and his deputy impeachment notice through media for misconduct.
However, minutes after the ruling, some lawmakers defied the Court ruling with special sitting presided by the Deputy Speaker Hon Laori Kwamoti ordering its clerk to go ahead and publish the said impeachment notice in two national dailies and NTA.
While ruling on the application filed by the lawmakers the state acting Judge, Justice Ambrose D. Mammadi averred that “In view of the holding of supreme court judgment in the case of Inikojo vs Adeleke to which I am bound, I refused to exercise my discretion to grant the application sought by the appellants.
” I hold that service of the notice of allegation against the respondents must be personal service. I resolved the issue for determination in the negative. I refused the application, its accordingly dismissed.
But in defiance of the ruling,nine members including the deputy speaker who were initially on two weeks’ recess hurriedly met on Monday at a special session to adopt the rules and proceedings of the June 18th 2014 , directing the clerk to serve the Governor and his Deputy with the impeachment notice.
During the sitting, the member representing Hong Constituency Mr. Wafama Theman raised an issue of constitutional matter on the decision of the House to serve Governor Murtala Nyako and his Deputy for their alleged gross misconduct to table.
There and then the Deputy Speaker,Mr Kwamoti Laori who presided officer invited the clerk of the House to come forward and furnish the members with the resolution of the House on the. 18th June 2014 which direct his to serve the Governor and his Deputy with the impeachment notice.
The clerk Mr Francis Gabsenso had informed the House that he could not serve the Governor and his deputy owing to the fact that they could not be located.
He disclosed that he had visited the offices of the Governor and his deputy severally without positive result stressing that he had gone to court and taken affidavit to service Governor Nyako and the Deputy in some National dailies.
Reacting on this development, a former lawmaker Alh.Umaru Mijinyawa Kugama describe the move by lawmakers to serve the governor and his deputy through media as ‘’contempt of court.”
According to him the action of the lawmakers is unconstitutional and they should not be allowed to go scot-free,to serve as deterrence.
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