Again! Court delivers another judgement on Rivers crisis

Federal High Court in Port Harcourt has dismissed a case brought by lawmakers loyal to Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, challenging the positions of 27 State House of Assembly members that defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The presiding judge Justice Emmanuel Obile, who explained that the lawmakers, led by Speaker Martins Amaewhule, remain valid members of the House.

This follows an earlier Supreme Court decision in February that had also refused Governor Fubara’s push to remove the defected lawmakers.

Governor Fubara’s legal team, headed by Yusuf Ali, had already withdrawn the appeal at the Supreme Court, stating that new developments had overtaken the matter.

The Rivers Assembly, represented by Wole Olanipekun, did not oppose this withdrawal.

The case at the Federal High Court was filed by three pro-Fubara lawmakers — Victor Oko-Jumbo, Adolphus Orubienimigha, and Sokari Goodboy Sokari — who asked the court to declare the seats of the 27 lawmakers vacant since they left the PDP, the party under which they were elected.

But the court ruled that their defection did not break any constitutional rule that would force them out of office.

“This court cannot close its eyes to the binding precedent of the Supreme Court, which in February recognised the leadership of the Rivers State House of Assembly under Speaker Martins Amaewhule. That decision, being from the apex court, is final and conclusive,” Justice Obile ruled.

Speaker Martins Amaewhule reacted positively to the judgment, saying it confirmed their right to stay in the Assembly.

Meanwhile, Governor Fubara’s supporters were disappointed by the decision.

This ruling marks another chapter in the political struggle between Governor Fubara and the pro-Wike faction of the Assembly, a conflict that has been ongoing since the December 2023 defections.

For now, the pro-Wike lawmakers have secured some breathing room, even as tensions continue between both camps.