Ettehgate

Ettehgate: Would Impeachment Have Mattered?

Ikechukwu A. Ogu, LL.B, BL, ACIP

I deliberately delayed writing this piece to a time when the fuss over the Ettehgate scandal would seemingly have waned. This is because I have a slightly different view on the matter and needed to note other viewpoints. No doubt, the 30^th of October 2007 will always remain significant in the annals of Nigeria and her House of Representatives. That was the day the duo of Mrs. Patricia Etteh and Babangida Nguroje, former Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively of the House of Representatives, finally but belatedly bowed to reason, public will and the rule of law by resigning from their posts. I use the adverb “belatedly” on purpose, because they and their supporters held the nation to ransom for too long a time. Accused of approving over N628 million for the renovation of their official quarters and purchase of official cars without due process, they needed no persuasion or coercion to step aside, to allow a dispassionate consideration of the report submitted by the David Idoko Panel of investigation. Rather, they chose the path of arrogance and dishonour, exhibiting inane indifference to public opinion. In other climes, they would have resigned immediately the allegation was made. But that does not happen in Nigeria.

It is unnecessary here to go through the now notorious chronology of events regarding the Ettehgate scandal. However, I wish to make some preliminary comments on the whole saga. In the first place, Etteh, Nguroje and those who aided and abetted them insulted the intelligence of Nigerians by their display of insensitivity to our feelings. They took our sensibilities for granted and, goaded by evil advisers and mentors, were bent on forcing their own will down our throats. Second, they resolved to breach the globally accepted rule of law and commonsense that “nobody should be a judge in his own cause” (Latin: nemo ex judex in causa sua). It remains amusing and ironic that, even as legislators who should know better, they were hell-bent on presiding over the consideration of the report of a Panel which investigated allegations levelled against them. Third, in an era with an administration that harps on respect for the rule of law, their behaviour is a throw-back to the immediate ugly past and the abominable aspects of our politics from which we earnestly need exit. Against this background, I commend the Senate President, David Mark, for offering to step down when faced with apparently spurious allegations which were probably instigated by some faceless person(s). It is immaterial to me that it was mere grandstanding, as imputed in some quarters. Even so, how many Nigerian public officers have so offered to step aside or resign in the face of damning allegations?

The ethnic and gender arguments lamely thrown up by some in an abortive attempt to save Mrs. Etteh (in particular) all fly in the faces of reason and logic. I am unable to do better in reply to such puerile views than has been done by many great people of Nigeria. I give glory to God that Etteh and Nguroje did eventually resign, although it was when faced with the bold handwriting on the wall. One can imagine the big sigh of relief heaved by Nigerians then. Their exit and replacement by Bankole and Nafada – two popular choices of the House - further confirm that the will of the people ultimately prevails. That is good for our struggling democracy. It is significant that Mrs. Etteh, who was imposed on the House by external forces just as late Senator Evan Enwerem was on the Senate in 1999, had to make way willy-nilly for the will of the people. Like Chief Enwerem, she was urged by her godfather(s) to stay on against popular wish, but unlike him she (narrowly) escaped impeachment. But unlike Etteh, late Chief Enwerem was not arrogant.

Suffice it to say that Etteh and Nguroje’s resignation was not honourable. It had all the trappings of ignominy. Had they resigned immediately the allegation was made against them, some scintilla of honour would have been credited to them. This brings me to the amusing incident where some (female) legislators reportedly “begged” Etteh at the eleventh hour to resign in order to avoid impeachment which would have dented her political career. It is only in terms of the disqualifying legal implications of impeachment for public office that I see any difference between it and an ignominious resignation. This is especially so where the reasons for the impeachment are of the same weight or nature with the ones which gave rise to the ignominious resignation. Otherwise, morally speaking, an informed and honest electorate should place both at par and mete out the same punishment to the affected persons, which is rejecting them for any public office or position of trust. I would rather the House had rejected their belated resignation and gone ahead to impeach Mrs. Etteh and Nguroje. Why was she ‘begged” to resign? It is my conviction that impeachment would have been their just deserts for insulting Nigerians.

But on a second thought, would their impeachment have mattered? I have my doubts in the light of what we see in some of our legislative houses. On November 18, 1999, the late Chief Evan Enwerem was impeached as Senate President following allegations of corruption and falsification of his name. Surprisingly, upon Enwerem’s death on August 2, 2007, the Senate reversed itself by setting aside his impeachment for indigestible reasons. We have not been told that Enwerem’s impeachment was not justified. Probably, the reversal was to clear the coast for him to get a state burial. The Senate is not the first Nigerian legislative house to reverse itself over an impeachment it carried out. I recall that the immediate past Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly set aside its earlier impeachment of Chris Ekpenyong, the former Deputy to ex-Governor Victor Attah. Perhaps, that was to enable him contest the 2007 gubernatorial elections in the state.

The impeachment powers of the legislature are comparable to the powers of the court to pass judgement in a case pending before it. Similarly, the same way a court is very circumspect in setting aside its judgement, so should the legislature be in reversing an impeachment. A legislative house should only set aside an impeachment if subsequent facts show that same was erroneous, malicious or unfounded in law and reason. Had the courts not nullified Peter Obi and Ladoja’s impeachment, theirs is such that is deserving of reversal by a legislative house. On the contrary, if an impeachment was justified by all reasonable standards, its subsequent reversal by a legislative house amounts to casting aspersions on the integrity of the legislators who carried it out.

Mindful of the flow of politics in Nigeria, we may not have seen the last of this sort of unjustifiable and ignoble U-turn by our legislative houses. It is based on this that I appreciate the House of Representatives for accepting the belated and dishonourable resignation of Mrs. Etteh and Nguroje, instead of impeaching them. Had the House of Representatives impeached them, justified as it is in the circumstance, the probability is high that in the future the same House may reverse itself. By not impeaching Etteh and Nguroje, the House of Representatives has saved itself and Nigerians the embarrassment of a future volte-face on a matter it would have done with all justification. Thus, it is my humble view that had Mrs. Patricia Etteh and Babangida Nguroje been impeached, it may not have been worth the while eventually. We are better off without it.