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Rivers Assembly Crisis: Court Orders Parties To Maintain Status Quo
As the political crisis rocking the Rivers State House of Assembly deepens, the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Monday, January 22, ordered all the parties to maintain status quo.
The court, in a ruling that was delivered by Justice J. O. Abdulmalik, directed the parties not to take further steps, pending the determination of an application that is seeking to stop Governor Siminilaya Fubara from re-presenting the already passed N800billion 2024 budget of the state before the legislative house.
Justice Abdulmalik fixed February 28 to hear the application which was brought before the court by six elders of the state.
The plaintiffs in the matter, led by a member of the Rivers State House of Assembly representing Bonny State Constituency, Hon. Victor Okon Jumbo, are; Senator Bennett Birabi, Senator Andrew Uchendu, Rear Admiral O.P. Fingesi, Ann Kio Briggs and Emmanuel Deinma.
They had through their team of lawyers led by Mr. Olukayode Ajulo, SAN, approached the court, praying it to declare seats of 27 lawmakers in the state that defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, vacant.
In a 19-paragraph affidavit that was deposed to by the 6th Plaintiff, Deinma, who identified himself as an indigene of Rivers State from Okrika Local Government Area, the court was told that sometime in November, 2023, 27 out of 32 members of the Rivers State Assembly, “without any justification or lawful excuse whatsoever, decided to defect from the PDP, being the platform under which they were elected.”
According to the deponent: “On the basis of the above fact, the said 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly moved out of the Rivers State House of Assembly Complex and began to hold their proceedings at a different location.
“That it became an obvious fact that the 27 members of the Rivers State House Assembly are fully loyal to the former Governor of Rivers State, Chief Ezenwo Nyesom Wike (now the Hon, Minister of F.C.T.), while they are disloyal to the current Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Siminilaya Fubara.
“That only five (5) Honourable members of the Rivers State House of Assembly remained with the PDP, as they did not defect/decamp to the APC but remained as members of the PDP and as valid members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
“The said remaining five (5) Honourable members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, who did not defect/decamp to the APC, headed by Hon. Mr. Edison Ehie on the 30th of November, 2023, declared the seats of the said 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly vacant for decamping/defecting from the political party platform, PDP, under which they were elected as Honourable members of Rivers State House Assembly.
“That upon declaring the seats of the said 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly vacant, the said Mr. Edison Ehie (who now became the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly) immediately sent a Notice via a Letter to the 5th Defendant, wherein he informed him of the vacancy in the 27 seats of the Rivers State House of Assembly and requested that he should conduct a bye-election to fill the said 27 vacant seats.
“That the aforesaid development resulted in several law suits on both sides (which are the said 27 members who defected to another political party and the five [5] members who remained valid members of the Rivers State House of Assembly) in a bid to exercise superiority over one another.
“While the whole issues/disputes were ongoing, sometime in December, 2023, the Executive Governor of Rivers State (Mr. Sim Fubara) presented the 2024 Appropriation Bill to the five (5) member House of Assembly headed by the said Mr. Edison Ehie,” the deponent averred.
More so, the plaintiffs queried the constitutionality of a peace agreement they alleged that President Bola Tinubu compelled Governor Fubara to enter into with the immediate past governor of the state and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike.
They maintained that the said agreement that was signed on December 18, 2023, was not only illegal, but amounted to an usurpation, nullification and undermining of the extant/binding relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
Consequently, they are praying the court to, among other things, determine whether President Tinubu, Fubara and the Rivers State Assembly, have the rights and are entitled to enter into any agreement that has the effect of nullifying or undermining the constitutional/legal potency of the provisions of Section 109 (I) (g) and (2) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
They contended that neither President Tinubu nor governor Fubara has the statutory powers to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, from conducting fresh election to replace the 27 Rivers State lawmakers that defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC.
Aside from President Tinubu, who was cted as the 1st Defendant in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1718/2023, other Defendants in the matter, are; the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, governor Fubara, Rivers Assembly, Speaker of the Rivers State Assembly and the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.
Meanwhile, Justice Abdulmalik ordered substituted service of the court processes on the defendants, stressing that in view of circumstances sorounding the case, they should be put on notice to enable them to respond to the ex-parte motion the plaintiffs filed to stop the re-presentation of the Rivers State budget to the pro-Wike lawmakers that decamped to the APC.
The Rivers State Chief judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi has granted pardon to six inmates standing awaiting trial at the Port Harcourt maximum correctional center.
The six lucky inmates granted pardon on Tuesday by the state Chief Judge included Nwekeala Chizoba, Samuel Emmanuel, Aniete Kelvin, Ebube Fubara and Goddey Okpara who were on awaiting trial as murder suspects and have all spent between 10 years to seven years in the custody without a proper information filed against them in the court.
Justice Amadi during a special gaol delivery exercise last Tuesday at the Port Harcourt Maximum Correctional Centre opined that the special gaol delivery was part of activities lined up to commomerate the 2024/2025 legal year in the State and restated the commitment of the state judiciary in decongesting the correctional centre and ensuring that those inmates who are not supposed to be there are removed from the custody.
The state chief judge stressed the need for all stakeholders to work together to build a society that supports rehabilitation and gives a second chance to anyone or group of people who have fallen short of the expectation of the law and have been punished accordingly.
He stressed that the National Judicial Council(NJC) encourages judges to pay more attention to criminal matters to enable them to decongests the correctional facilities, noting that since his assumption into office, his administration has been able to reduce the number of inmates in Nigerian Correctional Centres and the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre in particular, to less than 2,000 as against the over 4,000 inmates previously in the faculty.
According to him, “as they release the deserving inmates, they affirm their commitment to justice, compassion and rule of law but that they must not forget the fundamental principles of justice delivery system which is truth and fairness, integrity and equality before the law.”
I encourage you all the released inmates to return to your families and become better citizens. You must not engage in action that will return you all back to prison. Let me say that while the judges show empathy to you all, it does not absolved individuals from being held accountable for actions against individuals, corporate organisations and state which the law frowns at, ”he stated
The Chief Judge thereafter stood down the exercise to enable the DPP to intervene to case files following the fact that majority of the persons listed to benefit from the exercise are facing murder charges and adjourned to a date that will come before December.
Earlier in his goodwill message, the outgoing state Comptroller of Nigerian Correctional Centre, Port Harcourt, Felix Lawrence, who was recently promoted to the rank of Assistant Controller General, commended the state judiciary led by Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi for their continuous effort aimed at ensuring justice and decongesting the facilities.
Other activities lined up for the event included special church service at St Paul’s Cathedral , Anglican Communion, Rebisi Port Harcourt, inspection of guard of honour by the state Chief Judge mounted by officers of the Nigerian police and a special court session held at the ceremonial court hall.
By: AkujobiAmadi
The Director General of Rivers State Bureau on Public Procurement (RBoPP), Dr. Ine Briggs, has explained that the Sir Siminalayi Fubara administration plans to enforce transparency in governance through public procurement.
Speaking at a one-day Public Procurement Enlightenment workshop organised in collaboration with the State Local Government Service Commission for newly elected chairmen, vice chairmen, secretaries and leaders of legislative assemblies, Dr. Briggs said it is key for grassroot development.
She stated that the Sir. Fubara administration plans to reduce wastage and at same time infuse efficiency in public expenditure.
The RSoPP DG said the local government political office holders remain key drivers in the new vision hence the workshop is to arm them with knowledge on how to execute projects in tandem with needs of the people.
“ Your role in the prudent management of public resources is, therefore, not just administrative it’s the cornerstone of delivering the dividends of democracy. Every procurement decision you make must reflect a commitment to fairness, transparency and accountability” Dr. Briggs submitted.
One of the key goals of the administration she further reminded the participants was to use their offices to foster economic growth through public procurement.
She warned that the law establishing the agency empowers it to penalise defaulters, but that what is more important is voluntary compliance to the laws.
In addition to that, she said urged the local government council leaders that champion the practice and implementation of public procurement law.
On his part, Acting Chairman of Local Government Service Commission, Pastor GoodLife Ben Iduoku averred that the aim of the workshop is to arm key stakeholders in the local government system to generate new ideas, innovation and strategies in tandem with government policies and programmes.
The workshop dealt on various topics on procurement planning, methods, Understanding Bid Process, including types of Construction Contracts and law.
Some participants were awarded excellence and meritorious awards as part of the programme.
By: Kevin Nengia
The 19th anniversary of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Rivers State Chapter, recently ended in Port Harcourt in grand style, with participants from various schools including proprietors, the academia, civil society groups and top government functionaries charting the way forward for educational improvement.
The 19th NAPPS anniversary christened, ‘Innovation and Adaptation: Transforming Challenges Into Opportunities’ was held at Casoni Hotels, Port Harcourt.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Rivers State Chapter of the association, Dr. Jaja Adafe Sunday expressed gratitude to the members and executives for their untiring efforts towards the achievements of the body.
He sought the intervention of government on the lingering crisis on the economy as it is affecting the running of schools.
He decried high cost of things including fuel and raw materials which has adversely affected the running of schools and payment of teachers.
Dr. Sunday hinted that the current economic situation in the nation is biting hard on the operations of schools, saying inflation, removal of fuel subsidy, fuel scarcity, poor electricity supply, tariffs and lack of government grants are some of the challenges faced by schools, and urged the members to brace up to the challenges, as it is the panacea to building a brighter future.
Guest speakers from the health sector and the academia thrilled the gathering on the essence of basic education which they said is the key to national development.
Former Dean of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Professor Azuru and the Chief Medical Director of Meridian Hospitals, Dr. Odo Iyke were some notable guest speakers who delivered lectures at the occasion.
Some distinguished proprietors also got special recognitions and awards.
The 19th anniversary cake was cut by the Rivers State NAPPS Chairman with representatives of the state government assisting.