Zamfara Speaker Kicks Against Parallel Sittings

The Speaker of the Zamfara State House of Assembly, Hon. Bilyaminu Isma’il Moriki, has criticised the parallel sittings claimed by some suspended members of the state house of assembly and said the purported sitting was illegal, null, and void.

Addressing newsmen in Gusau on Thursday, the Speaker, reacting to the sittings of some suspended lawmakers, including the one whose seat was declared vacant, said no parallel sittings were conducted legally.

The Speaker stressed that there is only one legally valid house in the state, Gusau, the state capital.
He described the suspended lawmakers’ sittings as illegal, noting that their case was before the court and that the court had ordered both parties to maintain the status quo. However, the suspended lawmakers sat independently in defiance of the court order.

The Speaker of the House expressed deep concern over the attendance of a former member whose seat has already become vacant. He stressed that the man has no legal right to continue calling himself a member of the House because he has violated the law and has been legally removed from his seat.

Ten suspended members of the state house of the assembly were reported to have organised a sitting to challenge the embattled speaker, Bilyaminu Isma’il. They also gave Governor Dauda Lawal a one-month ultimatum to end insecurity in the state or face impeachment.