The Rivers State Government has issued a statement clarifying that the recent judgment by the Court of Appeal in Abuja did not reinstate the Martin Amaewhule-led faction of the State House of Assembly, dismissing claims that they still hold membership in the Assembly.
In a statement released on Thursday by the State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Israel Dagogo Iboroma, SAN, the government emphasized that Amaewhule and 26 other lawmakers vacated their seats automatically when they defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on December 11, 2023.
Iboroma cited Section 109(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution, which stipulates that lawmakers who switch political parties lose their seats.
“The issue of the defection of Martin Amaewhule and 26 others was never before the Federal High Court or the Court of Appeal. Therefore, no court has legitimized their membership of the House of Assembly following their defection,” Iboroma asserted.
The Attorney General further clarified that the case at the Federal High Court and the subsequent appeal were focused on the 2023 Appropriation Law and the National Assembly’s intervention in the legislative functions of Rivers State, not the status of the defected lawmakers.
In light of the dismissal of the state’s appeal regarding the 2023 Appropriation Law by the Court of Appeal, Iboroma criticized the misrepresentation surrounding the ruling.
“There is a wave of false reports suggesting that Amaewhule and the others remain in the Assembly with him as Speaker. This is patently untrue,” he stated.
He also announced that the state government intends to appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court and will file an application for a stay of execution to maintain the current status quo.
Governor Siminalayi Fubara, as conveyed by Iboroma, has urged the people of Rivers State to disregard any misleading reports regarding the court’s judgment and assured them that appropriate legal steps are being taken to resolve the matter.