Rivers Assembly Crisis: Oko-Jumbo-Led Assembly denounces Amaewhule faction resolutions

The Victor Oko Jumbo-led Rivers State House of Assembly has denounced resolutions by the Martins Amaewhule-led faction of the Assembly.

Oko-Jumbo made the announcement on Tuesday on the floor of the House, stating that Amaewhule and twenty-four others have no legal capacity or moral grounds to pass such a resolution that prohibits the Governor from spending State funds.

He recalled that Amaewhule and twenty-four former members had defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to the All Progressives Congress, APC, on December 11, 2023, and their seats were subsequently declared vacant by the Edison Ehie-led assembly by virtue of section 109, subsection 1 (g) and (2).

Oko-Jumbo also said that, consequent on the constitutional provisions and the declaration of their seats vacant, the only recognized tenth Assembly is the one led by him.

He called on members of the public to disregard the activities of Amaewhule and twenty-four others and urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to expedite action in conducting a by-election to fill their seats.

The statement in full text

Distinguished Honourable members, ladies and gentlemen, the news of the illegal sitting of the 25 former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, led by Martin Amaewhule, crowded our television screens and social media space yesterday, the 15 Day of July 2024, where they, having no legal capacity or moral basis, passed a resolution to the effect that the Governor, His Excellency, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, GSSRS, is not permitted to authorize the withdrawal of money from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the State. The resolution further threatened that the House will declare a Government shutdown on expenditure until an Appropriation Bill for the 2024 fiscal year is presented and passed by the House. The resolution furthermore directed the Governor to desist from further authorization of withdrawals from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the State and to direct all Rivers State Government Ministries, Commissions, Agencies, Departments and Extra-Ministerial Departments to desist from spending taxpayer funds until the 2024 Appropriation Bill is laid before the former members parading themselves, albeit unashamedly, as members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

The House states as follows:

.1 On the 1* Day of December 2023, at the 87 Legislative sitting of the House, former Speaker, Martin Amaewhule and the 24 former members defected from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

2. By virtue of section 109(1)(g) and (2) of the 1999 Constitution which is self-executing, and consequent upon their defection, on the 13 Day of December 2023, R.t Hon. Edison Ogerenye Ehie, DSSRS, Esq, PhD, as the then duly recognised Speaker of the 10* Rivers State House of Assembly, by virtue of a court order granted by Hon Justice Danagogo on the 12th Day of

December, 2023 in Suit No. PHC/3030/CS/2023, and pursuant to section 109(2) of the 1999 Constitution, declared their seats vacant.

3. Consequent to the above Constitutional provisions and the declaration of their seats vacant, the recognised 10′ Rivers State House of Assembly is the one led by Rt. Hon Victor Oko-Jumbo. Thus, the Rivers State Government has ceased paying any form of salaries, allowances or statutory remunerations to the former members.

4. The 10 Rivers State House of Assembly, which is the legitimate House under the leadership of Rt. Hon. Victor Oko-Jumbo is the only one recognised by law and the Rivers State Government, and thus has been receiving all statutory allocations due the House of Assembly and has been discharging its financial obligations by paying the salaries of the recognised Honourable members of the House, their aides, and allowances of the public servants in the Rivers State House of Assembly.

5. Martin Amaewhule and the 24 ex-lawmakers hinged their resolution on section 122 of the 1999 Constitution. That section empowers a State Governor to continue to make appropriations for 6 months, from the budget of the previous fiscal year, where for any reason he is unable to present an Appropriation Bill to the House.

6. May I remind the defected members that His Excellency, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, GSSRS presented the 2024 Appropriation Bill to the Rivers State

House of Assembly, under the leadership of the then Speaker Rt. Hon. Edison Ogerenye Ehie, DSSRS, and it was duly passed on the 13 Day of December 2023 and assented to on the 14 Day of December 2023.

5. This House awaits to receive from His Excellency, the presentation of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for the next 3 financial years, pursuant to section 10 of the Rivers State Fiscal Responsibility Law, No 8 of 2010, in order to prepare for the 2025 fiscal year.

б. The general public is therefore called upon to disregard and ignore those misguided former members, and also discountenance their illegal actions.

7. I once again call on the Independent National Electoral Commission to expedite preparations towards the conduct of a bye-election to fill the vacant seats created in the Rivers State House of Assembly by the defection of Martin Amaewhule and 24 others.

Signed

Rt. Hon. Victor Oko-Jumbo

Speaker, Rivers State House of Assembly.

Сс:

1. Prof. Ngozi Odu – Deputy Governor, Rivers State 2. Secretary to Rivers State Government

3. Head of Service, Rivers State

4. Accountant-General, Rivers State

.5 Auditor-General, Rivers State

6. Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria

7. Chairman, Revenue Mobilization, Allocation & Fiscal Commission, Abuja 8. Accountant-General of the federation, Abuja

9. Group Managing Director/CEO Zenith Bank PLC

10. Managing Director/ CEO, Access Bank Group