Rivers crisis: Anxiety as Appeal Court delivers judgment on Amaewhule-led Assembly

All parties involved in the crisis that has gripped Rivers State are eagerly anticipating the Court of Appeal’s decision on the appeal filed by Martins Amaewhule and 24 others against the state High Court decision.

The residents of the state are of the opinion that the anticipated court ruling would substantially resolve the protracted political dispute and restore stability to the oil-rich state.

The outcome was expected to decide the Victor and vanquish the crisis between the state Governor, Sir Siminialayi Fubara, and his estranged benefactor, Chief Nyesom Wike, who is the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

The current tension that had led to a series of events, was caused by the Interlocutory Injunction of the High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, which recognised Victor Oko-Jumbo as the speaker.

Justice Charles Wali of the State High Court also ordered Amaewhule and 24 others to stop parading themselves as speaker and lawmakers of the state House of Assembly.

But Martins Chike Amaewhule and 24 other lawmakers, approached the Court of Appeal praying it to vacate the order to allow them to return to their functions as the state lawmakers.

The Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt, while refusing to stay the execution of the order, decided to hear the matter and give judgment.

The three-member Appeal panel comprised Justice Jimi Olukayode Bada, Justice Hamma Akawu and Justice Balkisu Bello Aliyu, however, ordered the parties involved in the crisis in to maintain the status quo.

However, armed with the interlocutory order, the governor has been conducting government businesses with the Oko-Jumbo-led assembly as the authentic speaker and legislators.

The governor through Oko-Jumbo screened and confirmed chairmen and members of the caretaker committees of local government areas.

But the elected local government chairmen, whose tenure expired on June 17 refused to vacate their offices citing the tenure elongation law made by the Amaewhule-led lawmakers.

They contended that by the new local government law, they were entitled to remain in office for six months to enable the governor to conduct fresh local government elections.

They said they would not obey the decision of the High Court, which scrapped the tenure elongation law because it was given against the status quo ante declared by the court of appeal and an earlier judgment of the Federal High Court.

They recalled that Justice Omotosho of the Federal High Court in a judgment barred the governor from interfering in the activities of the Amaewhule-led House of Assembly.

The legal imbroglio was said to have created the confusion fueling tension in Rivers State.

Following the status quo ante of the Court of Appeal, the police decided to take over the local government secretariats to stop a bloody clash between supporters of the caretaker chairmen and the foot soldiers of the elected chairmen.

The caretaker chairmen based on the order of the governor had continued to operate from makeshift places as they kept discharging their functions.

The elected chairmen and their supporters had been protesting and commending the police efforts to maintain the peace insisting that the police should continue to barricade the secretariats pending the decision of the Court of Appeal.

Some residents, however, wondered why the Appeal Court having known that their decision was crucial to significantly resolving the Rivers situation, failed to immediately rule on the matter.

An employee of a private company, who identified himself as Emmanuel, appealed to the court to quickly rule on the matter and halt the escalating tension.

He said: “It is obvious that there are no longer political solutions to the matter. It is only the court that can separate the warring parties.

“The elected local government chairmen are mentioning the court of appeal, the police are also saying that their actions of taking over the secretariats were informed by the status quo of the court of appeal. We are appealing to the court of appeal to deliver its judgment on time to at least calm the tension”.

A civil servant, who identified herself as Sylvia, begged the court to resolve the Rivers issue on time without further delay.

“The court should know that all eyes are on them. Millions of lives in Rivers State depend on them. I had expected them to handle the matter with dispatch. There is no need to delay any judgment about Rivers crisis”, she said.

But the Court on June 20th reserved its judgement on the matter saying the date of the ruling would be communicated to the parties.

It was gathered that the court would give the long-awaited judgment before the end of the week.

(The Nation)