Ibeto remains my deputy, says Aliyu

Despite his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ahmed Musa Ibeto remains the deputy governor of Niger State.
This was disclosed on Wednesday by Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu when he swore in three commissioners.
Aliyu and Ibeto were elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2007. Their tenure expires on May 29, 2015.
Ibeto defected to the APC last month and when Aliyu went on vaction a few weeks ago, he handed over to the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Alhaji Adamu Usman, fuelling speculation of an attempt to impeach the deputy governor.
The commissioners are Alhaji Yussuf Tagwai, Hajia Hassana Adamu and Abbas Bello. They had, last year, resigned to contest the PDP primaries for elected offices.
Aliyu said on Wednesday: “I have a good working and personal relationships with Ahmed Musa Ibeto. In fact, I did not spite the deputy governor when I travelled. As far as I am concerned, he is still the deputy governor. I handed over to the speaker because the deputy governor wrote to me of his intention to travel for the lesser hajj on February 19, the same day I travelled.
“I also saw him on television attending a meeting of the APC and I assumed that he would leave for the lesser hajj from Abuja. So, I had no option than to hand over to the Speaker as provided for by the 1999 Constitution as amended. If the Speaker had been unavailable, I would have handed over to the Chief Judge.
“Constitutionally, Ibeto is still the deputy governor and he will function as the deputy governor till the end of our mandate”.
Meanwhile, Aliyu has signed the 2015 Appropriation Act passed by the House of Assembly last week into law.
The House approved N80,815 402,545 out of which N42,164,221,001 is for recurrent expenditure while N38,651,181,544 is for capital expenditure.