President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua yesterday said he will not prevail on Speaker Patricia Etteh to resign from office following the controversy trailing the N628m house renovation scam. However, the president is happy that the crisis in the house is resolving itself in line with legislative procedure, hoping that the furore will be resolved before the 8th of November, so that he could present the 2008 budget proposal to the National Assembly.

This is coming as members of the house of Representatives resume today from their one-week adjournment with increasing opposition against the Speaker, as the Odu'a Youth leaders forum (OYLF) called on her to step aside and allow for the appointment of a speaker pro tempore to preside over the ldoko panel report. In addition, more members of the House have threatened to go ahead with impeachment is she fails to resign.

Yar' Adua's special assistant on communication, Mr. Segun Adeniyi, said yesterday that the president has decided not to interfere in the ongoing furore at the house because of his conviction that democratic institutions are more important than individuals.

He stated this at the State House, adding, "The president has refrained from using his extra constitutional powers to prevail on the Speaker Patricia Olubunmi Etteh to step down."

He said that the crisis is gradually setting itself out, which is why he believes the November 8 day for presentation of the 2008 appropriation bill would stand.

"The president has made his decision very clear. What the president intends to do is to give the union constitutional order that would be less dependent on individuals where institutions would be strengthened. I think it is so convenient for people to belief the president for not intervening, but it also convenient for people to believe the president what he means by this."

"Of course, you would know that the president doesn't have the power to intervene in the house. But people are also aware that in Nigeria there are extra-judicial constitutional powers available to the Nigerian president with which he can just call the speaker and say, 'Look, I want you to stop that'."

President of the OYLF, Comrade Afolabi Adeboye who briefed the press in Abuja yesterday, said the entire Yoruba race was embarrassed by Madam Etteh's desperate hold on to her position, adding that the only way forward in the resolution of the crisis is for the speaker to accept the law of natural justice by not presiding over a matter she is affected.

"In our opinion, the way forward in the crisis in the House is for Madam Speaker, Hon. Patricia Olubunmi Etteh, to rescue whatever is left of her shattered and powered reputation by obeying the law of natural justice that compels her not to be a judge in her own case.

"To this end, we call on Madam speaker to upon the resumption of house sitting tomorrow Tuesday, 30 October 2007, step down from the speakership and allow for the emergence of a speaker pro tempore, as provided for in the rules of the house. The speaker pro-tempore is then to immediately lead the committee of the whole House to debate the report of the Hon. Idoko-led panel and come to a conclusion promptly".

He admonished the Peoples Democratic Party to stop treading the "path of dishonour" by supporting the "immorality of Madam Speaker" not to step down as demanded by the law of natural justice.

He advised the party to take a cue from President Yar' Adua's commitment to the rule of law and redeem its image in the eyes of the Nigerian public adding that the party should not support any compromise solution that is contrary to the provisions of the house rules.

According to Adeboye, Etteh is a continuation of the old order in the South West which, though incompetent, has monopolised power at the expense of the educated and the youth, stressing that the conduct of the House of Representatives in the last seven weeks "has been shameful and reprobate," warning that Odu'a would no longer accept that and may be forced to march on the National Assembly if she fails to allow common sense and reason to prevail.

"We, youth leaders of Odu'a extraction, for the avoidance of doubt, are so frustrated with the shameless conduct prolonging the House crisis that we are considering the option of moving into the National Assembly en masse to make a strong stand for the restoration of order and propriety," he said.

He commended members of the Integrity Group who nave remained resolute in the fight to enforce probity and accountability in the house, urging them not to give up until the right thing is done by the leadership.

"We want to encourage them to continue firmly m their principled stand, and assure them that posterity is taking note of their dignified service to the nation".

Meanwhile, a cross-section of lawmakers have asked Etteh to resign honourably or be impeached today.

Speaking during different interviews, Hon. Martins Babale (PDP, Adamawa), Hon. Yusuf Maitama Tuggar (Bauchi), Hon. L. Dilkon (Plateau) and Mustafa Sani Haliru (Kaduna) said Etteh has reached the end of the road in the fight against the interest of the house she is heading.

According to Babale, it would be a Dig mistake for the speaker to allow the house to go through impeachment process in order to remove her from office.

In his words, "Impeachment process takes time to heal the wounds inflicted on those involved. But if she fails to resign, we are prepared to go through that painful process to remove her. More so, that we now have more than the required two-third majority to remove her from office. I am personally advising her to resign so as to make things easier for us to continue the assignment required of us in the house".

He warned that it would be grave for her not to heed the advise as she risk being handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission for prosecution if she fails to resign immediately.

Tuggar on his part said the speaker should avoid making things difficult for herself by clinging to power because she has already lost the fight.

"We gave her opportunity on three occasions to reduce the tension and crisis in the house by stepping aside so that her case could be decided. But on those three occasions, she rebuffed us. Now we are not in the mood to tolerate her stubbornness. She should resign to avoid being impeached."

The lawmakers apologised to Nigerians for the pains the crisis has brought to the public, urging that they should remain calm, as the house members are capable of resolving the crisis.

They dispelled the allegations that President Yar'Adua is behind Mrs. Etteh to remain in power, arguing that the president has demonstrated his sincerity to uphold the rule of law.