The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) urges Governor Siminalayi Fubara to avoid actions that could intensify the ongoing political crisis in the state.
The state Caretaker Committee Chairman of the party, Tony Okocha, issued this directive during a press briefing in Port Harcourt.
Okocha’s statement was in response to the ex-parte order obtained by the factional Speaker of the House of Assembly, Mr. Ediso Ehie. The order restrained two PDP lawmakers, Martin Amaewhule and Dumle Maol, from violating the directive relocating the assembly’s “activities and meetings” to a more secure location.
It’s noteworthy that Amaewhule and Maol still assert their claim to the positions of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the house. The ex-parte order was granted by Justice M.W. Danagogo at a Port Harcourt High Court.
The order additionally prohibited Amaewhule from “disrupting and interfering” with Ehie’s activities until the motion on notice is decided.
The court also cautioned against Amaewhule’s use of thugs and police to forcibly enter the premises of the State House of Assembly Complex.
The court ordered the relocation of the house “to a secure and more conducive environment to ensure that the activities and meetings of the house are not disrupted during the period of the renovation of the burnt building, pending the determination of the hearing of the motion already filed”.
Ehie had been overseeing the activities of the house outside the assembly complex after it was set ablaze on the night of October 29.
However, the APC chairman expressed dissatisfaction with Danagogo’s order recognizing Ehie as the speaker, especially when the judgment for Ehie’s suit seeking recognition as the speaker was reserved until January 2024. He contended that issuing an ex-parte order on a case with a reserved judgment amounted to an abuse of court processes.
Okocha asserted that the APC would not stand idly by while the ex-parte order is enforced, alleging that the order was granted in clear violation of established legal principles and in defiance of the National Judicial Council (NJC) law.
He suggested that the fear of a mass defection of 27 out of the 31 PDP lawmakers to the APC prompted the acquisition of the ex-parte order to facilitate the governor’s presentation of his 2024 budget estimates to the assembly.
He questioned the legitimacy of three remaining members of the house, along with Ehie, receiving the 2024 Appropriation Bill.
Okocha stated that if the judge did not promptly reverse his decision, the party would have no choice but to submit a petition to the NJC.
He emphasized that the state APC would not tolerate any form of intimidation or harassment directed at its new members.