Lawmakers’ thugs clash as embattled Plateau speaker, colleagues meet

The crisis rocking the Plateau State House of Assembly continued on Monday as rival thugs supporting the two contending sides clashed at the assembly’s complex.

Trouble started when the embattled Speaker, Abok Ayuba, and lawmakers loyal to him were holding a meeting inside the building.

Ayuba was on October 27 impeached by eight of the 24 members of the assembly and elected Yakubu Sanda as the new Speaker.

But Abok and members of the House loyal to him held a session outside the assembly complex same day during which they suspended six of the members that impeached him, and declared him (Ayuba) as the authentic speaker of the house.

Governor Simon Lalong had recognised Sanda as the new speaker of the assembly.

However, Abok and the lawmakers loyal to him gained access to his office on Monday and were holding an executive session preparatory for a sitting when some youths staged a protest in front of the assembly complex in support of Abok.

Some other youths believed to be loyal Sanda, the new speaker, entered the assembly complex through the back door.

This degenerated into a pandemonium as those that gained access to the building through the back door started breaking the doors and windows to stop the lawmakers from sitting.

In a swift reaction, those that were protesting in front of the complex scaled the fence and started fighting those that were destroying properties at the assembly.

However, security personnel intervened and brought the situation under control, beefing up security within and outside the assembly complex.

The Plateau Commissioner of Police, Edward Egbuka, and Commandant, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps(NSCDC) in the state, Alexander Barunde have relocated to the assembly as part of efforts to contain the situation.

A detachment of personnel of Operation Safe Haven has also been deployed to the assembly complex.