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| L-R: Rt. Honorable Alvert Ayambem, Speaker Cross River State House of Assembly and Mr Joseph Odey, DG of Youth Action Network, and APC member in Cross River State. |
CALABAR —The political turmoil within the Cross River State House of Assembly has intensified as Joseph Odey, Director General of the Youth Action Network, YAN and an APC member, filed a lawsuit to contest the reaffirmation of Honorable Alvert Ayambem as Speaker.
Recall that sometime in May, 17 out of 25 members of the Cross River State House of Assembly had in a dramatic event voted to remove Rt. Hon. Elvert Ayambem,as Speaker of the 10th Assembly and days later Governor Bassey Otu was said to have broker a subsequent agreement that saw the reinstatement of Ayambem as Speaker.
The statement by the Speaker's Media aide that restored Ayambem reads in parts: "Rt. Hon. Elvert Ayambem has been unanimously reaffirmed as Speaker of the tenth Assembly of Cross River State. The reaffirmation of Ayambem followed a rapprochement brokered by the state governor, Senator Bassey Otu and critical stakeholders with the 25-member Assembly in Calabar yesterday. Ayambem expressed his appreciation to the governor and the concerned stakeholders for showing extraordinary leadership during challenging times."
Meanwhile, the above decision has since generated reactions from the public, the latest of which is a Court order obtained by Mr. Joseph Odey, Director General of Youth Action Network (YAN), and an All Progressive Congress (APC) member in Cross River State, seeking to restrain Honorable Alvert Ayambem from being recognized as Speaker of the 10th Assembly of Cross River State.
Odey is also seeking in Suit number HC/166/2024 between Joseph Odey and The Governor of Cross River State, Attorney general of the state, Clark of the House and all 25 Members of the house of Assembly, a declaration that the Speaker, remains removed, and should not be recognized as Speaker of the Assembly amongst other prayers.
In his prayers to the court, Mr Joseph Odey is of the opinion that, "Cross River State is at risk of governmental disruption due to the absence of a duly elected Speaker of the House of Assembly. Without a validly elected Speaker, the laws passed by the House are invalid, hindering the Governor's ability to govern effectively.
"To uphold democratic principles, Cross River State must follow proper procedures in selecting its Speaker in line with the rules laid down by the House of Assembly for itself in 2011. The impeachment of Mr. Elvert Ayambem was lawful, but his continued role as Speaker is not; because he was not re-elected according to the Assembly's rules.Governance requires following laid down rules and processes."
Mr Odey further buttresses that, "The Speaker cannot be chosen outside the House chamber. After Mr. Elvert's impeachment, a formal election must take place within the Assembly to determine the new Speaker. To safeguard good governance and democracy, I have brought motions before the Cross River State High Court asking the Court to:
"Restrain government officials from recognizing Mr. Ayambem as Speaker until this matter is heard and decided by the Court. Restrain Mr. Elvert Ayambem from acting as Speaker until the matter is heard and decided by the Court. A properly functioning legislature is necessary for effective governance and the progress of our state and I believe that the Court, in its wisdom, will ensure that we get a properly functioning House of Assembly once again."
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