Posted by From BUCHY ENYINNAYA, Asaba on
There was chaos yesterday at the floor of the Delta State House of Assembly as a group of some unidentified men invaded the House and disrupted proceedings.
There was chaos yesterday at the floor of the Delta State House of Assembly as a group of some unidentified men invaded the House and disrupted proceedings.
Signs of imminent danger were first noticed when security men started barring journalists from entering the press gallery, a place where they hitherto had unhindered access to Daily Sun gathered that the lawmakers who had come in for the business of the day had just sat for about five to seven minutes after their caucus meeting before some unidentified men allegedly loyal to the Deputy Speaker, Honourable Funkekeme Solomon, apprehensive of an impeachment plot against him (the deputy speaker), invaded the House to disrupt proceedings with the aim of ensuring that the alleged impeachment plot does not sail through.
At this point, hell was let loose as there were gunshot sounds in the gallery.
Causing stampede and pandemonium in the House. The gun shots were allegedly fired by the speaker's security aides to scare the intruding men, who were also alleged to have fired the first round of shots.
The situation led staff and others within the assembly complex to run to safety by scaling the fence walls.
Daily Sun further gathered that the problem in the House was as a result of the apprehension of the legislators over the yet-to-be-delivered judgement of the appelate court in Benin on the case filed by the Action Congress (A.C) governorship candidate, Mr. Peter Okocha over the April 2007 governorship election in the state.
Faced with the fact that the Benin court might call for a new election for the post of governor, the lawmakers are already thinking of who becomes the state acting governor. Some of the lawmakers would not want the present speaker of the House, Honourable (Dr.) Olisa Imegwu, an Ndokwa man from the same area with one of the PDP governorship aspirants, Chief Godwill Obielum, who is said to wield a lot of influence in the politics of the state is being positioned to emerge as acting governor.
This stemmed from the fear that he might favour the ambition of his kinsman, Obielum. This, according to a source, has led to several impeachment plots against the speaker, who has been surviving them, mainly through the intervention of the state Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan. But yesterday's problem in the House, Daily Sun further gathered was orchestrated by people who wanted to stop an impeachment plot against the Deputy Speaker, Honourable Funkekeme Solomon, one of Dr. Uduaghan's men and who is allegedly interested in becoming acting speaker before his elevation as acting governor.
The invaders, numbering about 15 were also said to have beaten up and tore into shreds the cloth of former speaker of the House, Hon. Frank Enekorogha, who happens to come from the same Ijaw area with the deputy speaker, While reacting to the developing, Chief Press Secretary(CPS) to Funkekeme, Mr. Patrick Edema, denied any involvement and said: 'The deputy apeaker is not in anyway connected to any act of violence or thuggery that was allegedly perpetrated by unidentified persons in the Assembly this morning.
He is a law maker who believes in due process and the ideals of democracy."
Speaking on the development, acting Commisioner of Police in the state, Mr. Jacob Oshiomigho said he heard some militants invaded the House and had to send some police men to the scene. .