The Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly, Hon. Emmanuel Emeruwa, has suspended the member representing Obingwa East state constituency, Chief Solomon Akpulonu, for granting media interviews over the affairs of the Assembly.
Emeruwa stated that Akpulonu who is a former majority leader of the Assembly has been suspended for 14 sitting days.
Vanguard gathered that the House has been enmeshed in crisis since the Speaker announced Hon. Uchenna Okoro of the minority Labour Party,as the majority leader of the House.
The PDP has 11,LP 10, while the YPP produced 2 and APC 1.
The PDP lawmakers led by Akpulonu has been staging walkouts during sittings, protesting that it is the majority party in the House and should occupy the majority positions.
The PDP lawmakers had continued to ask the Speaker to read the letter submitted by the party leadership nominating her members for majority leadership positions.
Announcing the suspension on the floor of the House, the Speaker explained that the House cannot tolerate acts of insubordination and accused Akpulonu of inciting members against the leadership of the Assembly.
He further stated that it was wrong for the lawmaker to be granting press interviews and revealing all the House has been doing, without proper clearance from the leadership of the House.
He insisted that what is done in the House should ‘remain within the House’.
He said; “Hon. Solomon Akpulonu has been causing chaos in the Assembly since its inauguration. He has been tolerated for too long. As lawmakers, it is normal to disagree as long as it is done with decorum and within the confines of the law.”
The Speaker further stated that the suspension will be communicated to Akpulonu who was absent at the sitting.