Stakeholders Back Nasarawa Assembly Over Lafia LG Chairman’s Suspension

Concerned stakeholders of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lafia local government area have backed the decision of the Nasarawa State House of Assembly to suspend the chairman, Mohammad Haliru-Arabo, for three months.

The stakeholders’ position was made known at a press conference by the spokesman of the group, Muhammad Habibu in Lafia yesterday.

According him, the action of the state assembly was in tandem with the stipulations of the Constitution.
He noted that the assembly, in exercising powers vested in it by the constitution, examined the allegations against the chairman and found that he clearly breached the law, and therefore acted decisively on the matter.

“For clarity, Section 7 of the constitution does not merely acknowledge local governments; it places them under the legal and structural authority of the State House of Assembly. The assembly determines the structure, functions, conduct and operational framework of every local government in Nasarawa State.

“This naturally includes disciplinary actions when officials violate the law or act contrary to their mandate. Similarly, Section 128 of the constitution further empowers the House of Assembly to investigate any matter relating to the execution of state laws, the administration of public offices, or the conduct of any official whose conduct affects governance. Local government chairmen fall directly under this constitutional oversight,” he explained.

He commended the assembly for upholding the law by invoking the constitution on the matter.
An APC chieftain and Turaki of Lafia, Alhaji Abubakar Usman Sandaji, had condemned the action of the assembly suspending the chairman.

Sandaji, who spoke on behalf of the Nasarawa Council for Protection of Democracy (NACOPOD), had described the assembly’s action as hasty, deeply flawed, politically charged, and dangerous to democratic governance.

“The suspension was predicated on allegations that the chairman intruded into the impeachment process of the Speaker of the Lafia Legislative Council, yet the House has failed to provide any iota of evidence. To suspend an elected official for such claims without proof is not oversight; it is overreach,” he had said.

NACOPOD, therefore, called on the assembly to reverse the suspension and follow due process if there are genuine issues requiring investigation.

The group also urged Governor Abdullahi Sule to ensure that democratic institutions in the state are not used for political witch-hunts.