Tribune What Jonathan, 5 Northern govs discussed · Written by Taiwo Adisa - Abuja · Monday, 29 July 2013 00:00 INFORMATION at the disposal of the Nigerian Tribune confirmed on Sunday that the meeting of five state governors from the northern part of the country with President Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday was largely to discuss security issues. Sources, however, stated that a leg of the meeting was used to discuss the Rivers State crisis and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in line with the previous meetings of the five PDP governors with former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and former heads of state, Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar. Sources told the Nigerian Tribune that the meeting between President Jonathan and Governors Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso (Kano), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe) and Kashim Shettima (Borno) involved a leg devoted to national security issues and the second involving strictly PDP matters and the Rivers crisis. Sources confirmed that the meeting with the president was aimed at intimating the governors of a security dimension being read in some quarters to some of the recent meetings held between them and some former leaders. A source said diverse interpretations were being ascribed to the meetings between the governors and Obasanjo, Abdusalami and that the governors decided to clear the air on their motives. The governors were also said to have told the president that their efforts were aimed at resolving the perceived logjam in the polity and that their findings were originally meant to be presented to him. Sources said the meeting aimed at resolving the Rivers crisis was just at the preliminary stages and that stakeholders were calling a comprehensive meeting in a short while. It was also gathered that the meeting reviewed the security situation in the three emergency states, whereby the president was able to let the governors into some details of security operations. Meanwhile, sources also told the Nigerian Tribune on Sunday that the Federal Government has commenced a critical study of the provisions of Section 11(4 and 5) of the 1999 Constitution, as far as it relates to the powers of the National Assembly to take over state legislature. The Senate and the House of Representatives had voted for a takeover of the House of Assembly of Rivers, in line with Section 11(4) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended. A source said whereas Section 11(4) empowered the National Assembly to take over the functions of the state legislature, where it had become impossible for the state lawmakers to carry out their functions, Section 11(5) indicated that: “For the purposes of subsection (4) of this section, a House of Assembly shall not be deemed to be unable to perform its functions so long as the House of Assembly can hold a meeting and transact business.” Presidential Adviser on Political Matters, Dr Ahmed Gulak, at the weekend, said the takeover of the functions of Rivers State assembly was hasty, adding that worst cases of crisis had happened in state assemblies in the past without National Assembly’s intervention. However, another source said the application of Section 11(5) means that the National Assembly would need to be absolutely sure things had actually broken down in a state before it could apply Section 11(4). In another development, the Chief Felix Obuah-led PDP in Rivers State has accused the governor, Rotimi Amaechi, of not being interested in a peaceful resolution of the crisis ravaging the state. In a statement on Sunday, the party said Amaechi had never cared to visit the injured Honourable Chindah in the hospital or offer any assistance or condolence to him or his family. “If Governor Amaechi desires peace, he would have gone to see the badly battered lawmaker and show concern for the sake of humanity, but instead of that, he is plotting that the Attorney General of the state should enter a nolle prosequi to terminate the criminal proceedings to be commenced against Honourable Chidi Lloyd,”the statement signed by Obuah’s aide, Jerry Needam said. Reacting, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Amaechi, David Iyofor, said Honourable Llyod had not been charged to court yet, adding that the alleged directive on a matter that had not even arisen was most unfortunate.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Jul 2013 11:31:40 +0000
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