Rivers: Fubara’s Suspended Chief Of Staff, Ehie Posts Cryptic Message Online

The suspended Chief of Staff in Rivers State, Edison Ehie, has sought to reassure supporters of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, urging them not to fear following the recent political turmoil in the state.

Ehie, who was among the political appointees suspended with immediate effect on Wednesday by the Sole Administrator, Vice-Admiral Ibok Ibas, took to his verified Facebook page with a cryptic message, referring his followers to Zechariah 4:7.

In his post, Ehie quoted the passage: “Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become a level land. And he will bring out the top stone amid shouts of: ‘How wonderful! How wonderful!’”

The message attracted a mix of positive and negative responses from readers, with many expressing support for Ehie and the governor, while others criticized his approach.

Ehie has been a central figure in the protracted political crisis in Rivers State. As the Leader of the House of Assembly at the beginning of the dispute, he played a significant role in the series of events that led to the current emergency rule.

He was a trusted ally of Governor Fubara in the House but was suspended, along with three other lawmakers, by the Speaker Martins Amaewhule-led Assembly.

Ehie was notably the lawmaker who declared the seats of other lawmakers vacant after they allegedly defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

This declaration caused a rift in the Assembly, leading to parallel sittings, which were temporarily halted after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu intervened, leading to a seven-point peace agreement.

After the peace agreement, Ehie resigned his membership from the House of Assembly and was appointed as the Chief of Staff by Governor Fubara.

However, the peace did not last, and the political factions returned to conflict, with pro-Fubara lawmakers reinstating the declaration of vacant seats and continuing their parallel sittings supported by the courts.