Why Yar'Adua must hand over now, by Kwara Speaker

PRESIDENT Umaru Musa Yar'Adua would best demonstrate his respect for the rule of law if he hands over power to his Deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, Speaker, Kwara State House of Assembly, Tunde Muhammed, has said.

In a chat with reporters yesterday in Ilorin, Mohammed said by so doing, the President would also show his respect for the constitution and save the nation from the current impasse.

According to him, the constitution of Nigeria has a better provision for what to do at a moment like this Reference to S 124 of the 1999 Constitution is explicit on it.

His words: "As a democrat and a lawmaker, I stand by what the constitution says. After all, the President himself has been a proponent of the rule of law since his assumption of office.

"However, we need to pray more for his recovery. He has done well for us as a nation, especially with the way he amicably resolved the Niger Delta issue and the sanity he has brought into our judiciary system, among others."

The Speaker of the 23-member House, which has only Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers, said the absence of opposition legislators in the Assembly would not affect its duties to the electorates.

He disclosed that in the outgoing legislative year, the Assembly passed 13 bills into law, while four other bills before it had passed the second reading stage.

Mohammed, who represents Omupi Constituency, thanked residents of the state for their confidence in the reconciliatory role of the House, especially "some lawyers who usually direct their clients to us. It saves time and does not cost them any money."

He debunked insinuations that the House had become a rubber stamp to the Executive, arguing that effective legislation should not be assessed by disputes among the arms of government in a modern democracy.