We won't impeach Bello - PDP lawmakers

The members of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Kogi State House of Assembly said they have no agenda to impeach the Governor of the state, Alhaji

The Majority Leader of the House, Mr Matthew Kolawole, said this during interview with newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday.

Kolawole said the concern of the members is to resolve the leadership crisis rocking the state assembly.

"The state governor is just like new born baby without sin. For what reason will anybody want to kill the baby.

"To me, the governor has not done anything wrong to us and none of us here is talking about impeachment of the governor at all", he said.

Kolawole said it was baseless to say Mr James Faleke, the running mate to the late Prince Abubakar Audu in the Nov. 21 was sponsoring the crisis rocking the House.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), recalls that Audu, who contested the election on the platform of APC, died on Nov.22 before the result of the election was announced.

"If anybody is saying that Faleke is sponsoring us, he is misleading the public. Faleke is not part of this struggle.

"The struggle we have today is that we want to stabilise Kogi State House of Assembly as an independent arm of government", he said.

On outcome of members' meeting with the National Chairman of PDP, Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff, he said they agreed with the party's directive that the status quo should remain.

"We have passed another vote of confidence on the leadership of the House under Speaker Momoh Jimoh-Lawal and all of us have signed."

He added that Mr John Aba, one of the five members who had the intention to impeach Jimoh-Lawal was also present at the meeting.

He, however, said that Aba was yet to sign the resolution of the meeting adding that he stepped out after the meeting.

"So far so good, eleven of us here have signed. We are waiting for him to come back because the party has directed that we sign and he agreed."

The majority leader said that maintaining status quo under the leadership of Jimoh-Lawal was temporary in order to resolve the crisis on ground.

He was optimistic that the House could not be rubber-stamped for allowing the Speaker and governor to come from the same zone of the state pending the time a new speaker would be elected.

According to Kolawole, even if Jimoh-Lawal resigns, the onus lies on the House to unanimously agree on the new speaker that will pilot the affairs of the House.