Impeachment and Impunity under the Nigerian Constitution: A Case Study of Adamawa State

Abstract

The spate of impeachment in recent times in Nigeria had been a cause for worry and a serious threat to our nascent democracy. This paper examined the impeachment process provided under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended with particutar reference to Adamawa State. It critically identifiy the flaws in the impeachment procedure adopted by some State Houses of Assemebly in exercise of their power of impeachment under the constitution. The doctrinal method of research was adopted in this paper. It was found that the impeachment of the governor of Adamawa State in 2014 was irregular and highly political rather than borne out of the commission of any impeachable offence. The constitution did not adequately define an impeachable offence, which has played into the hands of unruly Houses of Assembly to interprete any action of the governor as impeachable. This unfortunate gap has 
however been repeated cautioned by the Supreme Court, which evetuall decaled the action of the Adamawa House of Assembely unconstitutional, null, void and of no effect. The paper recommended the involement of the electorate in the impeachment process of the governor or deputy governor by way of referandum as this would reduce incidence of litigation in the whole excerise.