Ailing Governor Sullivan Chime of Enugu State may
be “smuggled” into the country on December 31, the SUNDAY PUNCH learnt
on Friday.
Chime left the country on September 19 for
medical treatment but the state government had continued to insist that he was
only on vacation.
The six weeks leave of absence Chime applied for
ended on November 2.
It was gathered that the state government muted
the idea to bring Chime back in order to stop the state House of Assembly from
initiating an impeachment process against him.
To make the journey back to Nigeria easy and
without any discomfort for the governor who, had reportedly been bedridden
since September 20, 2012, a reliable source at the Enugu State Government House
stated that Chime was moved from an undisclosed hospital in New Delhi, India to
another in London on Wednesday.
Pleading anonymity because of the sensitivity of
the matter, the source said, “Chime, from what his wife said, is receiving
treatment for leukaemia (cancer of the blood) and other diseases. There are
plans to bring him home this year before the lawmakers make any move.”
Meanwhile, members of the Enugu State House of
Assembly are weighing the option of impeaching Chime, among other considerations,
if he fails to return to the country by January 2, 2012.
They commenced this move after the acting
Governor, Mr. Sunday Onyebuchi, presented the state 2013 budget last Friday.
Speaking to our correspondent in
confidence, some of the lawmakers stated that the decision to commence
impeachment process against Chime if he failed to return by January 2 would be
the right step in the overall interest of the state.
One of the lawmakers, from Enugu East, said, “I
think most of my colleagues are now convinced that we must act now to save us
from this unwarranted embarrassment. We are concerned about the health
challenges of the governor, but the state must move on.
“Another option, if we must give the governor a
soft landing, is to empower the acting governor to function as a substantive
governor.”
“If we do this, it would adequately fill the
vacuum that Chime’s absence is currently creating.”
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