Justice James Omotosho, in a judgment, ordered his reinstatement to the office on the grounds that the Edo State House of Assembly failed to comply with due process in the purported impeachment.

Justice Omotosho held that the allegation on which the House of Assembly based the impeachment proceedings was untenable in law and did not constitute a gross misconduct.

The judge, therefore, ordered the Inspector-General (I-G) of Police to provide him with needed security to enable him resume office and perform the functions of the office  until the end of his tenure.

Justice Omotosho equally set aside the appointment of another deputy governor in the place of Shaibu.

Shaibu, who was in court, shed tears of joy upon hearing the judge’s pronouncements.

On April 8, the state House of Assembly impeached Shaibu.

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Shaibu’s impeachment followed the adoption of the report of a seven-man committee set up by the chief judge of Edo, Justice Daniel Okungbowa to investigate allegations of misconduct against the deputy governor.

During plenary at the assembly complex in Benin, the Majority Leader of the House, Charity Aiguobarueghian, said the report of the seven-man judicial panel of inquiry presented to the House had two findings and one recommendation.

Aiguobarueghian said that while the report of the panel was unable to establish the case of perjury levelled against the deputy governor, the panel found him guilty of disclosure of government secrets.

According to the report, the seven-member judicial panel of inquiry recommended that the deputy governor be impeached on grounds of disclosure of government secrets.

The Clerk of the House, Yahaya Omogbai, conducted a head count of the lawmakers who voted for and against the impeachment of Shaibu.

Eighteen out of 19 members present at plenary voted for the impeachment of the deputy governor while one abstained from the head count and voting process.

The Clerk of the House stated that 2/3 (16 members of the House) was needed to carry out the impeachment.

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The HoS was released by his abductors on Monday night according to a family source, who pleaded anonymity.

The source said that Okungbowa was set free after payment of an undisclosed amount as ransom demanded by his kidnappers and that the HoS was hale and hearty since his release.

The family source disclosed that the ransom was paid through a collaboration between the family and the state government.

“We just want to thank God that our brother has been set free and in good health condition,” said the source.

The source, however, lamented that the Police orderly attached to the Head of Service, who was shot during the process of the abduction, died on Monday evening following complications from the gun shot injury he sustained.

It would be recalled that the driver of the HoS was shot dead by the gunmen before abducting him, as he was returning to Benin after attending a local event in Oza.

Source: NAN

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The gunmen reportedly killed his official driver, whose name could not be immediately confirmed, before abducting Okungbowa.

A senior civil servant, who craved anonymity, said the incident happened after the Head of Service, Okungbowa attended a local event in Oza.

“He was kidnapped on his way back to Benin City after attending the event. His driver was killed in the process,” the source said.

Efforts to confirm the incident from the spokesman, Edo Police Command, Mr Chidi Nwabuzor, was not successful as he did not pick calls.

The state Commissioner of Police, Johnson Kokumo, also did not pick his calls to his phone.

Source: NAN

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