The trending obnoxious clause 484 and 485 suspected to have been smuggled into the Imo State Administration of Criminal Justice (ACJL) signed by the governor have exposed the manner of legislators that Imo people have. The said sections reportedly gave the governor powers to arrest and detain anybody and release same at his pleasure, This has attracted so much opprobrium in the state as many are already making political capital out of it.
The governor has been accused. The clerk of the House has been accused. Some of the legislators have denied knowledge of the insertion if that was the case. The originator of the bill Hon Frank Ugboma, a lawyer and member representing Oguta state constituency stated that his bill terminated at 372 clauses raiding alarm over the issue.
The question which remains a mystery is how this cruel clause found its way into the law assented to by the governor in March. Another legislator, Hon (Barr) Dominic Ezerioha, the House Committee Chairman on Judiciary and Information seems to be throwing light on the issue.
He has owned up that nothing was doctored and that the bill was assented to as passed by the law makers. Evidence to that effect appear in his challenge to his colleagues in the event that anyone who has issues to the contrary should come forth when the Assembly resumes.
He was courageous to announce that “we passed the bill, that nobody smuggled anything” and went on to advise that Gov Uzodimma and the attorney-general should be removed from the matter. Meanwhile, the entire world including yours sincerely was already calling for the head of Uzodimma. It is quite unfortunate that the legislators could launch the state into a problem and turn round to deny knowledge of the issue at stake.
Many of the legislators have taken turns to exonerate themselves from the issue. It is shocking that they could forget so soon that there are records evidencing whatever transpired. It has also been revealed in an investigative effort from the Votes and Proceedings of the house as at March 5, that the bill passed had clauses up to sections 540, but somebody was insisting that the original bill he presented ended at 372.
We ask could it that he expected that the bill could have been passed without any addition or subtraction from the original work presented. It was also gathered that a committee of eminent persons were assembled from both the academia, the Nigeria Bar Association, the Judiciary itself among others to make inputs. Is it possible that they came and left without adding a word? What manner of lawmakers that could forget so soon as to embarrass the entire people of Imo State.
I can bet that these legislators ‘too busy’ as they claim may have passed the bill without scrutinizing it properly. I can also bet that even the governor may not be familiar with the contents of the bill for which he is getting a hard knock. I am not a fan of Uzodimma but in this case he has enjoyed my sympathy. The Assembly boys fuck up too bad.
