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The crisis rocking the Plateau State House of Assembly took a new dimension on Monday as the new Speaker, Sanda Yakubu, declared the impeached speaker, Abok Ayuba, wanted.
There was a standoff at the Assembly on Monday when thugs loyal to the two legislators, both members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), attempted to get firm control of the hallowed chamber in favour of their favourite “speaker”.
It took the intervention of police operatives to restore sanity at the premises of the Assembly although some property has been destroyed before the arrival of the operatives destruction.
The impeachment of Ayuba last Thursday ignited a crisis in the parliament.
After his removal, the embattled Speaker went to a community hall where he presided over a plenary session and announced the suspension of six lawmakers who spearheaded his removal.
Since then, Ayuba and Yakubu have been laying claims to the speakership searlt..
yuba and lawmakers loyal to him secretly went into the assembly’s chamber about 4am Monday in an apparent move to outdo his rival. But a few minutes later, Yakubu and lawmakers in his camp stormed the parliament.
It was gathered that the two warring camps went into a closed-door session, where Ayuba reportedly requested that he should be reinstated as the Speaker.
“Ayuba asked that he should be reinstated as a speaker and that afterwards he would resign and allow Yakubu to takeover,” a source said.
Lawmakers loyal to Yakubu rejected the demand of the embattled speaker, Daily Trust reports.
“The camp of the new Speaker left the parliament for the Government House. It was after they left that the commissioner of police came,” another source said.
It was at this point that security operatives whisked away the embattled Speaker from the chamber following the protest that rocked the assembly in the hours of Monday.
Yakubu later declared Ayuba wanted after a plenary he presided over.
It was not clear whether he had the powers to declare a fellow legislator wanted.
He also announced the suspension of six members of the assembly who are loyal to the impeached Speaker.
The suspended lawmakers are Henry Longs (Pankshin South); Dangtong Timothy (Riyom); Musa Agah (Rukuba/Iregwe); Bala Fwanje (Mangy South) and Nambol Listic (Langtang North).
The Speaker said they were suspended following the sitting they organised at a community hall on Thursday and forceful entry into the parliament on Monday.
“We hereby declare him (impeached speaker) wanted for conducting acts inimical to the interest of the House,” Yakubu said.
He also called on security agencies to arrest Ayuba for parading a fake mace, adding that the House had set up two committees to investigate the former Speaker over alleged financial misappropriation.