The speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Hon Victor Edoror, has revealed the real reason why the assembly has not sworn-in a People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Sylvanus Eruaga, disclosing that the assembly was investigating a case of forgery of certificate of return by Eruaga.
He said the assembly was not an apron strings to the executive arm of the Edo State government, saying “we are investigating a petition concerning forgery of certificate of return against him” and that “until that is exhausted, he cannot be sworn-in.”
The speaker was reacting to allegation by Eruaga that the speaker along with the state governor, Adams Oshiomhole, were working together to prevent his swearing in as a member of the assessment.
A Court Appeal sitting in Benin City, Edo State, had on December 19, declared Eruaga winner of the election conducting on April 12, 2015, asking Yakubu Gowon of the APC to vacate the seat for Eruaga of the PDP.
Speaking at a media briefing held at the state secretariat of the PDP on Friday, Eruaga said he has fulfilled all the necessary conditions needed to be sworn-in as a lawmaker and has presented himself to the assembly several times, but the assembly declined to swear him in.
Flanked by the state chairman of the PDP and other party leaders, Mr Eruaga displayed to journalists a Certificate of Return issued and signed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Enrollment of Order and clearance papers from the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) to back his claim that he has fulfilled the conditions stipulated by the Electoral law to be sworn-in.
“The speaker keeps saying they will get back to me. Court officials served the House through the clerk a Certified True Copy of the Enrollment of Order.
“They said they wanted a Certificate of Return, I brought it. The speaker told me that my matter was not in his hand. He said he has minuted on it and sent to the governor,” Eruaga said.
Also speaking, the Edo PDP chairman, Dan Orbih, alleged that the list of court orders disobeyed by Governor Oshiomhole was long, adding that, “this is one court order we will not allow him to disobey.”
She said in the next phase of the project, the state government would promote pilot farms in selected schools.(Tribune)
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