Onueze Okocha, a former President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), has asserted that deputy governors do not possess specific constitutional functions and can be likened to “spare tyres” in the government structure….CONTINUE READING....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
Okocha made these remarks while responding to the ongoing dispute between Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki and his deputy, Philip Shaibu.
During an interview on Channels TV, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria explained that deputy governors can only perform the functions assigned to them by the governor.
Unless circumstances such as impeachment, the death of a governor, or their incapacity arise, a deputy governor’s role remains passive, similar to that of a spare tyre.
Okocha stated, “Deputy governors are like spare tyres, they stay in the boot, nobody uses spare tyres if the four tires are working. The truth of the matter and this is the legal position is that a deputy governor has no specifically assigned functions under the constitution.”
He emphasized that only the governor of a state has the authority to delegate responsibilities to the deputy governor or other members of the state executive council.
As a result, a deputy governor does not hold any executive authority over state matters until such responsibilities are officially assigned by the governor.
“A governor usually has the prerogative to choose his running mate, and it is expected that the running mate, if they eventually win, will demonstrate total loyalty and support to the governor,” Okocha added.
He further clarified that according to the constitution, a deputy governor can only exercise functions and perform duties assigned to them by the governor.
Therefore, unless specific circumstances like impeachment, the death of a governor, or their incapacity occur, a deputy governor remains in a standby position similar to a spare tyre.
