Politics

Soldiers take over Kogi Assembly, bar lawmakers

Published

8 years ago

June 1, 2016

Soldiers take over Kogi Assembly, bar lawmakers

The crisis rocking the Kogi State House of Assembly took another dimension on Tuesday, as soldiers stormed the assembly complex and prevented members of the House from entering.

According to reports, the soldiers numbering about 15 arrived the assembly complex in a truck at about 6am and blocked the road leading to complex while also taking over the gate from the mobile policemen that had been on guard at the gate.

The soldiers also turned away Journalists who were at the complex to cover proceedings.

Speaking on the development, the G15 spokesman, Hon. Matthew Kolawole, said the turn of events was shocking, adding that his group was shocked that soldiers from the Army Records Unit, Kogi, had barricaded the Assembly’s gate and prevented the lawmakers from entering the assembly complex.

According to Kolawole, gunmen in two vans stormed the Kogi legislative quarters in the midnight of Monday and shot repeatedly into the air just to scare and intimidate the G15 members.

Read also: Reps amend CCB, CCT Act, strip president’s powers

However, the Special Adviser to the state governor on Media and Strategy, Alhaji Abdulkareem Abdulmalik, said the state government has nothing to do with the crisis rocking the assembly. He added that the soldiers were at the complex to prevent a likely breakdown of law and order.

Confirming the withdrawal of mobile policemen from the assembly complex, the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Yakubu Usman, said he withdrew his men in order to prevent a clash that might result in the loss of lives.

It would be recalled that the G15 lawmakers, led by the embattled Speaker, Momoh-Jimoh Lawal, had held plenary at the complex after it secured an Abuja court ruling declaring the impeachment of Jimoh and other principal officers of the House by the G5 lawmakers null and void.

RipplesNigeria …without borders, without fears

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now