The Rivers House of Assembly says it has uncovered “secret plots” by “certain persons” to use high courts in Rivers State to stop its sittings and scuttle its impeachment move against Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his Deputy, Ngọzi Odu.
The assembly spokesperson, Enemi George, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
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PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the assembly began impeachment proceedings against Governor Fubara and his Deputy, Mrs Odu, a professor, on Thursday, over alleged gross misconduct.
‘Plot to stop us’
Mr George, who represents the Asari-Toru II Constituency, alleged that the unnamed persons planned to use courts outside the Port Harcourt Judicial Division to get ex parte orders to “illegally” stop the lawmakers from performing their constitutional duties.
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The spokesperson argued that the persons plotting the move are “fully aware” of the provisions of Section 272(3) of the Constitution of Nigeria, which states that the Federal High Court shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine the question as to whether the term of office of a state lawmaker, governor, or deputy governor has ceased or become vacant.
“Also, section 188(10) states that ‘no proceedings or determination of the panel or of the house of assembly or any matter relating to such proceedings or determination shall be entertained or questioned in any court,” he said.
The lawmaker added that the persons are also “fully aware” of judicial pronouncements on this matter, especially recently at the Court of Appeal on a matter involving a similar ex parte order by a Rivers State High Court contrary to section 272(3) of the constitution.
“A word is enough for the wise,” he said.
Mr George called on those concerned to exercise restraint and refrain from acts inimical to the Constitution and the rule of law.
He asked Governor Fubara and his deputy to respond to allegations of gross misconduct.
“All that is required is for the office holders who have already been duly served with the Notice of Allegations of Gross Misconduct to respond to them item by item rather than deploy subterranean moves to subvert the law or use proxies to malign members and the Rivers State House of Assembly in the media,” he said.
Background
This is the third attempt by the Rivers assembly to impeach Mr Fubara since he became the governor of the state in 2023 amid a feud between him and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
The assembly first initiated an impeachment proceeding against Mr Fubara in October 2023 over allegations of gross misconduct.
But the impeachment process was dropped shortly after President Bola Tinubu mediated in the political rift between Governor Fubara and Mr Wike at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
In December of that year, the lawmaker officially withdrew the impeachment notice against Governor Fubara following a peace deal signed by Messrs Fubara and Wike.
The peace deal later broke down with the Rivers Assembly stripping Governor Fubara of the power to appoint caretaker committees for local government councils.
In March 2025, the assembly, for the second time, began an impeachment process against Governor Fubara and his Deputy, Mrs Odu, after serving a notice of alleged misconduct against them.
While the process was ongoing, President Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers on 18 March 2025 and suspended all elected officials in the state, including the governor, for six months.
Mr Fubara only returned to the office in September of that year, after the president declared an end to the emergency rule following a second peace deal brokered in June between Messrs. Fubara and Wike, alongside their supporters.
The second peace deal recently broke down with Mr Wike accusing the governor of reneging on the terms of the latest agreement in the peace deal brokered by the president.
Mr Fubara recently defected from the PDP to the APC, apparently in the hope of receiving political protection from the ruling party.
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