Niger State Speaker, Rt. Hon. Isah Kawu Tuesday directed the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Emmanuel Amore to order his men who have been occupying the assembly since last week to vacate the complex to allow for legislative work or risk legal actions.
Kawu also advised his predecessor, Hon. Adamu Usman to stop parading himself as the Speaker of the house.
According to him “the house may be forced to take undisclosed action against the Police boss and the immediate former Speaker.
The Speaker who spoke to newsmen in Minna condemned the continued occupation of the house by the Police, which he said was a breach of the right of the lawmakers to congregate and carry out their duties.
He said though the Police yesterday relaxed the siege on the house by allowing only assembly staff into the complex, while legislators are still barred from assessing the assembly to carry out their constitutional duties.
Kawu described the continued occupation of the police as a gag on the legislators, which he said was unacceptable, unconstitutional and a violation of the right of the lawmakers.
The Speaker then asked the Police Commissioner to order his men out of the assembly complex, stressing that their (Police) presence at the gate of the assembly was an eye soar to democracy and a disgrace to the state.
Asked what the lawmakers will do if the Commissioner failed to withdraw his men, Kawu said, “we have many options which I may not want to disclose now.
“He (Commissioner of Police) should know that we can sit anywhere but that is not in the good image of the state that law enforcement agents are at the gate of the assembly blocking members in a peace time”
On his predecessor, Kawu warned him to desist forthwith parading himself as Speaker.
While recalling that 20 of the 25 members of the assembly in a duly constituted sitting impeached him and elected new leader, Kawu noted that the court order Usman claimed to have secured was belated.
The Speaker said the injunction came after the action had been taken.
According to Kawu, “by the time the order was received the did (impeachment and election of a new Speaker) has been done. There records to show this. It was an order after an act”.
He warned his predecessor of consequences if he failed to heed his advise, saying “If he (Adamu Usman) failed to stop parading himself as Speaker, I will incur the wrath of the law. I shall report to the house to deliberate on action to be taken on him”.
When contacted on phone Police Commissioner Amore said his men are still in the House in compliance with a court order.
According to Amore “I am only acting on court order. I have two orders. One from an action by Speaker Adamu Usman and the other from an action by the Chief Servant (Governor). Police was joined in the suits and we are only obeying court order”.
Efforts to get the impeached speaker failed as his telephone lines were not reachable.