Cross River State House of Assembly Impeaches Speaker Elvert Ayambem
Calabar, Nigeria – Elvert Ayambem has been impeached as the Speaker of the Cross River State House of Assembly. The impeachment took place on Wednesday, with 17 out of the 25 members of the House voting in favor of the motion over allegations of financial misappropriation.
Ayambem, who had been in office for approximately 11 months, faced a no-confidence vote led by Hon. Effiom Ekarika from Calabar South 1 Constituency and seconded by Hon. Omang Charles Omang from Bekwarra State Constituency. Elected as Speaker of the 10th Cross River State House of Assembly in June 2023, Ayambem represents the Ikom 2 State Constituency.
The session turned chaotic post-impeachment, as a scuffle erupted when one lawmaker attempted to seize the mace, the symbol of the Speaker’s authority. The struggle led to a brawl in the chamber.
The impeachment notice, obtained by The Metro Lawyer (TML), detailed multiple allegations against Ayambem. The lawmakers accused him of misappropriating N48 million intended for electricity bills for the assembly complex and quarters and N404 million from 2% of all revenue collected by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) monthly. Additional allegations included the misappropriation of N19,437,844 from Local Government deductions and undisclosed 11-month deductions.
The notice also cited incompetence, improper conduct of plenary proceedings, and violations of the Cross River State Legislature Funds Management Law 2021, including arbitrary expenditure approvals and exceeding approval limits set by the law.
Lawmakers who signed the impeachment notice include Kingsley Ntui, Okon Owuna, Samuel Neji Abang, Cyril James Omini, Stanley Nsemo, Omang Charles Omang, Thomas Aruku, Eyo Bassey, Bassey Bassey Effiong, Francis Onete Ogban, Victor Nsa, Ovat Agbor, Pius Ashas Ashakia, Martins Achadu, Effiong Ekarika, Egbe Abeng Egbe, and Hilary Bisong.
This significant development marks a dramatic shift in the leadership of the Cross River State House of Assembly as the legislative body moves forward amidst these allegations.
See social media posts by some of the lawmakers as well as the removal notice below.
