Nasarawa LG legislature operates with two different maces

Newly elected local government legislature in Nasarawa local government of Nasarawa State, is operating with two different maces after a group of councilors made away with the original mace.

Daily Trust learnt that a faction of the 15 councilors, led by Ibrahim Otos (APC, Onda-Kana) grabbed the mace and walked out of an election which was held last Friday soon after a speaker emerged in the person of Umar Usman (APC, Nasarawa Main Town Ward) following an argument over the credibility of the exercise.

Usman was alleged to have accused a member of not voting for him during the secret balloting, sparking suspicion of rigging, in what threw members against themselves at the local government secretariat.

By Monday, Daily Trust learnt further, the clerk of the House, Umar Abubakar convened a meeting of the councilors and informed them of a decision to cancel the election because it was found not to be credible after the winner allegedly accused a member of not voting for him.

The House, Daily Trust gathered further, could not sit yesterday because most councilors insisted the inauguration was illegal because of the cancellation of the election, just as they insisted that only a magistrate, and not a lawyer is to inaugurate the House.

Contacted, Usman

said

he

was inaugurated alongside other officers, but insisted he does not know the status of the man who inaugurated him because, according to him “the clark invited the man, he said he was inviting a magistrate, so I came in and I was sworn in.”

Contacted, the lawyer said in a terse telephone statement that: “they were sworn in before me as the commissioner of oath.” He declined to make further comments, saying it was not convenient on him at press time to speak further.