Justice Phoebe Ayuba of a Federal High Court, sitting in Port Harcourt, has issued an order directing the two factions in the Rivers State House of Assembly to maintain status quo ante bellum and suspend further deliberations until the matter before it is dispensed with.
A factional Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Edison Ehie, had in a suit No: FHC/PH/CS/240/2023, approached the Court presided over by Hon. Justice Phoebe Ayua, praying the court to stop Rt. Hon. Martins Amaewhule and the other lawmakers from presiding over the activities of the legislative arm of the state government.
The Notice was filed together with the main suit by Ehie, as the new Speaker of the State House of Assembly and the House of Assembly.
The plaintiffs in the suit are Rivers State House of Assembly, as first plaintiff, and Rt. Hon. (Barr) Ehie Ogerenye Edison (Speaker, Rivers State House of Assembly) as second plaintiff.
The defendants are the factional Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Martins Chike Amaewhule, Rt. Hon. Dumle Maol (former Deputy Speaker, Rivers State House of Assembly), the Inspector-General of Police, Director, Department of State Security Services, Rivers State, and Commissioner of Police, Rivers State.
Ruling on the motion filed in the suit, Justice Ayua ordered that none of the parties on record should do anything about the matter since all the parties are expected to respect the court.
The order reads in part: “That an order is made directing the Plaintiffs/applicants to put the Respondents on Notice forthwith.
“That an order is however, made, directing that all parties on record respect the Court and should not take any step concerning the subject matter, since the matter is already before this Court – Sub judice – pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice.”
In the suit, the factional Speaker Ehie and the House of Assembly itself, was seeking, amongst others, a declaration that the former speaker and his former deputy, having been removed and suspended from the House, are not entitled to participate, disturb, interfere or obstruct the performance of the legislative proceedings of the House and the legislative duties of the new speaker in accordance with the provisions of Sections 90 to 104 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria.
Meanwhile, a faction of the Rivers State House Assembly led by Martin Amaewhule, on Tuesday morning held plenary under heavy security presence.
There sitting came less than 24 hours after the factional speaker of the house Edison Ehie alleged assassination attempt on him by some persons he said were police officers.
The plenary session generated tension across the state as four security vans were used to block the Moscow Road axis leading to the complex as security operatives ensured a total blockade of the road both to human and vehicle access.
Nigerian Tribune gathered that Amaeawhule, Speaker of the Pro-Nyesom Wike faction and 24 of his other members successfully carried out legislative duties at House of Assembly Complex which was burnt when the crisis broke out last month.
The heightened security arrangement was apparently to prevent uninvited lawmakers and other unauthorized persons from accessing the Assembly complex.
The lawmakers, were said to have deliberated on two items; the suspension of the strike by the Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria, PASAN, and also to ask the Police to prosecute the burning of the chamber.
And immediately after the sitting, some police officers locked the entrance of the State House of Assembly complex after.
This could not however, stop the sitting of the Edison Ehie- led faction.
Sources closed to that faction, which has sympathy for Governor Siminalayi Fubara said the Ehie faction in their session passed a vote of confidence on the Governor.
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