Abia deputy speaker impeached hours after presiding over speaker’s impeachment

By Steve Oko

The confusion and supremacy battle in the Abia State House of Assembly Tuesday, got messier as the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Ifeanyi Uchendu, has been impeached hours after presiding over the purported impeachment of the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Chinedum Orji.

Uchendu had earlier in the day, according to a viral video, presided over the impeachment of Orji at an undisclosed location in Umuahia suspected to be Emeka Omeruo Government Guest House.

The lawmakers who met at the location elected Hon. Chukwudi Apugo representing Umuahia East state constituency as the new Speaker.

But the House during a plenary later on the floor of the Assembly presided over by the Speaker, Hon Orji, impeached the Deputy Speaker, and elected Hon. Mandela Obasi representing Ohafia North as his replacement.

Eight other lawmakers who participated in the purported impeachment of the Speaker including the embattled Deputy Speaker were suspended by one month.

The suspended lawmakers include Hon. Chukwudi Apugo ( elected earlier as the new Speaker by those who impeached Orji); Hon. Kennedy Njoku ( Osisioma Ngwa North) who moved the motion for Orji’s impeachment; and Chijioke Chukwu ( Bende North) who seconded the motion for Orji’s impeachment.

Others were the Speaker of the sixth Assembly ( Isiala Ngwa South), Rt. Hon. Chikwendu Kalu; Obinna Ichita, Aba South; Aron Uzodike; Thomas Nkoro; Okey Igwe (Umunneochi).

It is not yet clear what is the bone of contention between the two camps of the feuding lawmakers.

The ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has been engaged in in-house bickering since after its abysmal performance at the just-concluded elections where it lost to the Labour Party.

Some chieftains of the party have been critical of the Governor who they accused of causing the fate of the party.