Lawyers criticize Aliyu for handing over to the State's Speaker

A number of lawyers in the country have described the action of Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger State asking the Speaker of the State House of Assembly to act on his behalf, instead of his deputy, as illegal and unconstitutional.

Human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), said Aliyu was by his action treating the government of the state as his party’s affair.

The governor belongs to the Peoples Democratic Party while his deputy, Mr. Ahmed Ibeto, recently defected to the All Progressives Congress from the PDP.

Falana said, “The deputy governor is still the Deputy Governor. This is not a party affair. It’s not PDP affair.

“We are not talking about the chairmanship of the PDP. Under the constitution, whenever the governor is not around, it is the deputy governor that takes over. It is a governmental affair, which has to be run according to the Constitution.

“He (the governor) has to operate under the constitution of Nigeria and not the constitution of the PDP.”