Anambra lawmakers decline felicitations on Obiano’s 6th year anniversary

By RAYMOND OZOJI, Awka

The lawmakers of the 7th state assembly of Anambra state yesterday gave a warning signal to Governor Willie Obiano of the likelihood of an unpleasant situation, should they continue to pretend that all is well between the legislature and the executive arms of government to avoid confusion and rancour.

The lawmakers’ bottled-up anger against the governor became manifest on the floor of the hallowed chambers when the Deputy Speaker of the state assembly , Rt.Hon. Paschal Agbodike who presided over the plenary , after reading a letter of commendation on the governor’s two years in office in his second term, asked his colleagues if anyone had a congratulatory message for the governor on his second year in office and six years of piloting the affairs of the state.

Hence , it was like Alice in wonderland when all the lawmakers kept mute for the very first time and none could volunteer a word of commendation for the governor who is said to have put smiles on the faces of the citizenry in the last six years.

That was a clear indication of a cold war brewing between the two arms of government .

Although Hon. Nonso Smart Okafor of Nnewi-North state constituency while supporting the motion for adjournment, made efforts to save the situation by congratulating the governor on his 6th year anniversary but this development didn’t go down well with other Lawmakers as many of them had left the chambers before he concluded his felicitations for the governor.

However, an inside source of the state assembly has it that the lawmakers are grumbling over unpaid statutory benefits.

The source claimed that the legislators were no longer finding the situation funny and they seem to be running out of patience because they could not fathom the reason Honourable members of the legislature should be taken for granted and their entitlements not met. (Daily Independent)