The House of Representatives, on Tuesday, said the two weeks suspension of plenary being considered by the House in order to sensitize Nigerians of the deadly disease has not commenced and is equally subject to reconsideration by the House.

A statement made available to ABN TV, by the Spokesman of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, stated that the House also considered a motion on the urgent need for emergency response and need to contain the deadly coronavirus.

According to Kalu, Some of the prayers include the need for the leadership of the National Assembly to set up an ad-hoc committee to liaise with the relevant health agencies to ensure efforts to combat the virus are intensified

The statement reads in full,

“The House of Representatives, in plenary on Tuesday the 3rd of March, 2020,
considered a motion on the urgent need for emergency response and need to contain the deadly coronavirus in Nigeria. The motion was thoroughly debated and passed.”

“Some of the prayers include the need for the leadership of the National Assembly to set up an ad-hoc committee to liaise with the relevant health agencies to ensure efforts to combat the virus are intensified. The House also called for a better orientation of the disease by the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture through relevant media outfits to keep Nigerians abreast of the situation.”

“An amendment to the prayers of the motion calling on the House to suspend plenary for two weeks to work and contribute its legislative efforts by helping to sensitize constituents on the coronavirus and how it is being handled was also adopted.”

“The amendment also urged the management of the National Assembly to put measures in place to ensure the virus does not find a place to fester in the National Assembly.”

“It is, however, necessary to clarify that the two weeks suspension of plenary has not
commenced and is subject to reconsideration by the House.”

“The leadership of the House is to meet and consider the arrangement necessary before a date can be fixed for the sensitization of constituents by their respective lawmakers, therefore, the business of lawmaking continues on Wednesday, March 4, 2020.”

Justice Chima Nweze on Tuesday gave a dissenting ruling when the Supreme Court in Abuja dismissed the application for review of its January 14, 2020 judgment which removed Emeka Ihedioha as Imo State Governor, and declared Hope Uzodinma as the valid winner of the last governorship election in the state.

A seven-man panel of the apex court led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammad, in a split ruling of six-to-one, described the application by Ihedioha as an invitation to sit in an appeal over its judgment.

But Justice Nweze, in disagreeing with the majority judgment, held that the Supreme Court had the power to overrule itself in a desirous situation.

He affirmed the Court of Appeal’s decision which upheld Ihedioha’s victory, adding that the apex court in the January 14, 2020 judgment wrongly declared Uzodima winner of the last governorship election.

“The reasoning in the judgment will sooner or later haunt our electoral jurisprudence,” Nweze said.

He said although his opinion was dissenting, “it is an appeal to the brooding spirit of the law.”

He noted that Uzodinma misled the court to accept the allegedly excluded results in 388 polling units without indicating the votes polled by other political parties.

He also faulted the results from the said polling units without indicating the number of accredited voters in the polling units.

Justice Nweze recalled how Uzodinma admitted at the election tribunal that he hijacked the result sheets from the Independent National Electoral Commission’s officials and completed the result sheets by himself.

He said the results could not be valid without indicating the number of accredited voters.

Justice Nweze, who commended Ihedioha’s lawyer, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN) for having the courage to file the application for the review of the judgment, said the apex court’s verdict gave rise to having the number of votes cast exceeding the number of accredited voters.

Lagos State House of Assembly at plenary on Tuesday passed the bill to create Amotekun Corps as a special unit of the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Corps.

It passed the bill after taking the third reading of the amendment to the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Corps Agency Law 2019.

The amendment bill had successfully gone through all the different stages of lawmaking ,which includes first and second reading, holding public hearing, laying and presentation of committees report, adoption of report by House, third reading and finally passage.

Details shortly…

The Supreme Court has dismissed the application for review of its January 14, 2020 judgement that sacked former Imo Governor Emeka Iheodiha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

A seven-member panel of justices presided by Justice Tanko Muhammad on Tuesday ruled that the court lacks the jurisdiction to sit on appeal over its judgment on the Imo governorship.

In the main judgment read by Justice Olukayode Ariwoola held that the application lacked merit and dismissed the application.

“The judgement of the Supreme Court is a finality,” he said.

The judge however said no cost would be awarded against the applicants.

Justice Nweze however delivered a dissenting judgement.