Allegations Won’t Distract Deputy Speaker Kalu – South East Group Calls for due process over petition on academic records

Allegations Won’t Distract Deputy Speaker Kalu – South East Group

Calls for due process over petition on academic records

A South East-based group, the South East Progressive Forum, has reacted to recent social media allegations concerning the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, describing them as distractions and urging that due process be allowed to take its course.

The allegations relate to a purported overlap between the Deputy Speaker’s National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate and his attendance at the Nigerian Law School, Enugu Campus. A group known as Abia Patriots is reported to have referenced a petition allegedly submitted to the Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) over the matter.

In a statement issued on Monday and signed by its spokesperson, Chief Ihuoma Okoronkwo, the Forum expressed confidence in the Deputy Speaker’s record and called on relevant authorities to objectively review any petitions before them.

Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu was elected Deputy Speaker of the 10th House of Representatives in June 2023. The Forum noted that, since his emergence, he has continued to discharge his responsibilities while representing Bende Federal Constituency.

The group acknowledged that public officials are often subject to scrutiny and differing political opinions, particularly within their home states. It, however, emphasized the importance of handling such concerns through established legal and professional channels rather than through media exchanges.

On the specific allegation, the Forum stated that the Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Committee, as a statutory professional body, is well positioned to examine any petition and make its findings known in due course. It urged members of the public to remain calm and allow the appropriate institutions to carry out their responsibilities without interference.

The statement also referenced Kalu’s previous participation in elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), noting that he was cleared to contest in both the 2019 and 2023 general elections.

The Forum concluded by encouraging all stakeholders to promote civility in political discourse and to rely on due process in addressing concerns relating to public office holders.