Have you had a good laugh today? If not, the political circus in Edo State should do the trick. Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja has reinstated Philip Shaibu as Deputy Governor, months after the state assembly booted him out.
What They Are saying
Justice Omotosho didn’t play with words, declaring the impeachment illegal, unconstitutional, null, and void. According to the judge, the Edo State House of Assembly’s actions grossly violated sections 188 and 35 of the 1999 Constitution. In simpler terms, they trampled all over the law.
Not stopping at reinstatement, the court ordered Shaibu’s back pay from April, when he was unceremoniously kicked out. To add more drama, the court issued an order preventing Governor Godwin Obaseki and the Edo State House of Assembly from hindering Shaibu’s duties. Even the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, was told to reinstate Shaibu’s security details.
The Edo State House of Assembly, refusing to take this lying down, has appealed the judgment and filed for a stay of execution. This means more months of legal wrangling, thanks to our famously sluggish judicial system.
Why It Matters
The whole issue began three months ago when the assembly, in a move echoing a personal vendetta, impeached the 54-year-old Shaibu. The legislators claimed he was guilty of leaking government secrets, following a “thorough” investigation by a seven-man panel—undoubtedly acting under Governor Obaseki’s orders. The panel’s recommendation led to Shaibu’s ousting, with 18 out of 19 members voting him out, one brave soul abstaining.
Shaibu, not one to go quietly, denounced the impeachment as a grave threat to democracy. He saw it as a direct attack on his ambition to run for governor in 2024 under the PDP banner—a right, he insists, every Nigerian citizen holds.
Following Shaibu’s removal, Governor Obaseki swiftly appointed Omobayo Marvellous Godwins as the new deputy, set to serve until Obaseki’s term ends in November 2024. The state assembly upheld the impeachment, ignoring Shaibu’s accusations of a dictatorship creeping into Edo politics.
As the appeal drags on, Edo State remains a theater of the absurd. The reinstatement, the appeals, and the constant political maneuvering only underscore the farcical nature of politics in Nigeria. How long this game of thrones will continue is anyone’s guess.
