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WAR IN RIVERS: GOV FUBARA RELOCATES HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY TO GOVT HOUSE AS PRO-WIKE LAWMAKERS SEND URGENT MESSAGE TO TINUBU
Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has gazetted Executive Order 001, relocating the State House of Assembly to the Auditorium, Admin Block of the Government House, Port Harcourt.
The Governor explained that the decision was taken because the current House of Assembly complex is unfit for use after it was burnt on October 29th, 2023, during the political crisis which rocked the state.
Fubara stated that the House of Assembly, in its present state, constitutes a threat to the lives of users and needs to be shut down for urgent repairs, renovation and reconstruction to take place.
The gazette is dated December 14th, 2023.
The Governor observed that the move to the government house was to ensure that the proceedings of the House of Assembly were not impeded and frustrated.
He said: “Now, therefore, I, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, the Governor of Rivers State, this 30th Day of October, 2023, pursuant to the powers vested in me under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria hereby issue, order and direct that all proceedings and business of the Rivers State House of Assembly shall temporarily take place at the auditorium, Admin Block, Government House, Port Harcourt, until the repairs, renovation and reconstruction of the chambers of Rivers State House of Assembly.”
In another development, the Assembly members loyal to FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, have called upon President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene and halt what they perceive as anti-democratic actions by Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
During their plenary session at the House of Assembly quarters along Aba Road, the lawmakers expressed grave concerns over what they labeled as Fubara’s autocratic governance style.
The Speaker, Amaewhule and his colleagues implored President Tinubu to wade in and call Governor Fubara to order.
In a statement released by Amaewhule’s Media Aide, Martin Wachukwu, the Majority Leader, Major Jack, accused Fubara of allegedly planning to demolish the recently constructed Assembly Quarters.
Members highlighted a series of what they termed as tyrannical acts by the Governor, including the burning of the Assembly’s Hallowed Chamber, demolition of the Assembly Complex, attack on the Speaker’s official residence, and the withholding of funds from Local Government Councils and the Assembly Service Commission.
They condemned such actions as despotic and urged the people of Rivers State and the President to intervene.
Amaewhule specifically criticized Governor Fubara’s intrusion into the Assembly, describing it as provocative and indicative of a dictatorial attitude. He questioned whether the Governor respected the constitutional principle of the separation of powers.
Amaewhule urged members to defend democracy and reject any attempts to sow ethnic division.
The Assembly resolved to communicate their grievances to the British High Commission, the American Embassy, the European Union, and the United Nations, informing them of Fubara’s alleged authoritarian conduct towards the Rivers State House of Assembly.Meanwhile, a court in Rivers State later on Friday declared the seats of Amaewhule and 24 of his colleagues vacant over their defection from PDP where they were elected to APC. The court said that their seats remain vacant pending the determination of the suit filed against them.
