Tuesday, June 13, 2023 saw the inauguration of new members of national and state assemblies across the country with leaderships emerging. But the situation was different in Jigawa State as the process was marred with controversy.
The former speaker, Rt Hon. Alhaji Garba Idris, aka ‘Kareka’, wanted to be nominated as the state’s speaker for the third time but the plan was aborted.
In a display of discontent, members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from his own local government area, Jahun, took to the streets of the state capital, Dutse in a peaceful protest over his nomination.
The demonstrators demanded that, the house leadership be given to a fresh candidate with new ideas instead of Kareka, who served as its speaker for the past seven years. This move gave birth to the election of Hon. Aliyu Haruna Dangyatin as the Jigawa 8th assembly speaker.
Hon. Garba was the speaker from 2015 before he was impeached on January 3, 2017 for alleged high-handedness and abuse of power but he was still re-elected in 2019 after Hon. Isah Idris was impeached.
The former speaker lost the battle by failing to do the needful in his seven years. The house’s responsibilities are to make laws and checkmate the executive.
The house failed to get the executive to face those challenges such as the high level of unemployment and failure to take adequate measures on flood disasters, proper implementation of the J-Power programme among others.
I hope that the new speaker will ensure a good relationship with the executive to ensure the dividend of democracy is enjoyed by the people.
But we don’t want the house to be a rubber stamp of the executive. Members should be committed and transparent. We also wish that competent and dedicated people are elected as principal officers and chairmen of sensitive committees in the 8th assembly.
One of the best or only ways Governor Umar A. Namadi will redeem his campaign promises is to have a vibrant, passionate, and articulate 8th assembly where both the executive and legislative will work in harmony as a team as well as in the best interest of the state.
We urge the legislators to be faithful, calm, firm, and to resist any external forces that may attempt to undermine the process and subvert the assembly’s independence.
Our hope is that the governor will continue to consult on issues, which he is well known for, before taking any action.
Adamu Muhd Usman wrote from Kafin-Hausa Jigawa State [email protected]
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