Rivers Crisis: No evidence 27 Lawmakers defected from PDP to APC – Supreme Court
Rivers Crisis: No evidence 27 Lawmakers defected from PDP to APC – Supreme Court
There is no evidence that the 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Supreme Court has held.
It found that Governor Siminalayi Fubara, who raised the allegation of defection, withdrew it when he retrieved all the documents he filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The Supreme Court held that by failing to support his claim of defection with evidence, in the eyes of the law, no defection took place and consequently the status quo in the House of Assembly must remain.
Fubara had explained that he withdrew the processes after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu brokered peace.
He insisted that the other parties did not withdraw theirs.
The Apex Court slammed the governor for behaving like a despot by demolishing the House of Assembly complex and preventing the 27 lawmakers from sitting.
It said Fubara destroyed the government of Rivers State over his fear of impeachment
These are contained in Friday’s Apex Court judgment on the Rivers crisis. The Certified True Copy (CTC) was obtained by The Nation yesterday.
“In this case, the executive arm of the government has chosen to collapse the legislature to enable him to govern without the legislature as a despot.
“As it is, there is no government in Rivers State,” the Supreme Court held.
In the 62-page lead judgment read by Justice Emmanuel Agim, a clearer picture was painted as to why the justices affirmed Martin Amaewhule as the authentic Speaker.
The court held that the Constitution did not support Fubara’s recognition of four members as the authentic House of Assembly.
It said: “What is clear from the above concurrent findings is that the 8th respondent (Fubara) started the prevention of the sittings of the Rivers State House of Assembly constituted by the number of members as prescribed by Section 96 of the 1999 Constitution long before the issue of the remaining 27 members defecting to another political party arose.
“The said activities of the 8th respondent (Fubara) were adjudged by the concurrent holdings of the Court of Appeal in its judgment in Appeal No. CA/ABJ/CV/133/2024 as illegal and unconstitutional long before the allegation of defection started.
“Against the background of these concurrent findings and holdings in the Court of Appeal Judgment in Appeal No.CA/AB)/CV/133/2024, it is reasonable to conclude that the cross appellant’s reliance on Sections 102 and 109 of the Constitution and the doctrine of necessity is to continue his brazen subversion of the Rivers State House of Assembly, the 1999 Constitution and legitimate government in Rivers State.
“Having by his own admission engaged in a series of illegal activities just to prevent the other 27 members from participating in the proceedings of the House to carry out their legitimate legislative duties which they were elected to do, his resort to Sections 102 and 109 of the 1999 Constitution and the doctrine of necessity on the basis of his allegation that they have defected is a red herring to perpetuate his subversion of the Rivers State House of Assembly, the 1999 Constitution and democratic government in Rivers State.
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“The eighth respondent (Fubara) had collapsed the Rivers State House of Assembly.
“Therefore no question about any member having lost his seat in that House due to defection can validly arise.
“There must be a House of Assembly for any constitutional processes therein to take place.
“The claim that the 27 members are no longer members of the House on the basis of an alleged defection is a continuation of his determination to prevent them from participating in the proceedings of the House. It is an engagement in chicanery.
“Sections 102 and 109 of the Constitution cannot be invoked in aid of this unconstitutional enterprise.”
According to the Supreme Court, a government cannot be said to exist without one of the three arms that make it up.
It added: “In this case, the executive arm of the government has chosen to collapse the legislature to enable him govern without the Legislature as a despot. As it is, there is no government in Rivers State.
“The doctrine of necessity cannot be invoked to justify the continued existence of a deliberately contrived illegal or unconstitutional status quo.
“It cannot be invoked to justify and protect the illegal actions of the eighth respondent and his despotic rule of Rivers State without a House of Assembly.
“It applies to genuine situations that were not contemplated in the provisions of the Constitution or any law, which situations require the taking of some legitimate extra-constitutional or extra-legal actions to protect the public interest.
“The eighth respondent’s fear of impeachment by the House Assembly is no justification for his attacks on the House of Assembly, the Constitution, the Government of Rivers State and the rule of law.
“Political disagreements cannot justify these attacks and contempt for the rule of law by the governor of a state or any person.
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“What the eighth respondent has done is to destroy the government because of his fear of being impeached.
“The part of the judgment of the Court of Appeal, affirming the judgment of the Federal High Court in suit No. FHC/AB)/CS/984/2024 is hereby affirmed.
“The said judgment of the Federal High Court in suit No. FHC/AB)/CS/984/2024 is hereby restored.
“For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby ordered that the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Accountant General of the Federation should forthwith stop releasing and paying to the Government of Rivers State, its organs, departments and officials any money belonging to Rivers State until an Appropriation Law is made by Rivers State House of Assembly constituted as prescribed by the 1999 Constitution.
“The Rt Honorable Martin Chike Amaewhule and the other 26 members should forthwith resume unhindered sitting as Speaker and members respectively of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
“The Rivers State House of Assembly Should resume sitting with all elected members forthwith,” the court said.
Afolabi gave the warning on Sunday in Akure during an interactive session organised by the state Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), tagged: “The Platform”.
He said series of operations had been carried out in different parts of the state, while some kidnappers were arrested and victims rescued since he assumed office.
The CP said that efforts made so far by the command, in terms of relationship with the people, had started to yield positive results.
According to him, the People Safety Partnership initiative I introduced when I assumed duty in the state a couple of months ago, is already paying off.
He explained the initiative was especially effective with residents of violence-prone communities on intelligence gathering.
The CP, therefore, called on the residents to immediately contact the police whenever they suspected any strange faces and suspicious movements in their areas.
He, however, said the command needed assistance from government and other stakeholders in the state, in terms of provision of patrol vans and repair of grounded patrol vehicles.
According to Afolabi, the provision of more vehicles will ensure the timely and effective response to distress calls.
“We can’t use orthodox methods to address present security challenges. Most of our vehicles are grounded. The refurbishing are ongoing through the financial assistance of the people.
“We need Military drones that can go 50km, live tracking devices to get the location where criminals are hiding, Lawful Intersection (LI), fueling of vehicles among others.
“Now, kidnapping has gone highly sophisticated and you can confirm from anybody.
“We can’t use the same old method, or maybe the approach of the 70s or the 80s or even the 90s to address this present security challenges.
“In a lot of states where they are having successes and breakthroughs, they have hi-tech machines, drones, LI machines, live tracking, but here, we don’t have them.
“So, most times, whenever there is any incident of kidnapping, you deploy your men to comb the bushes. That is archaic and you hardly can achieve much success,” he said.
Afolabi further disclosed that the successes he had achieved was as a result of the synergy with other sister security agencies in the state.
The CP also said that the command, under his watch had trained various investigative personnel periodically, whicb would enable continuous achievement of the needed results.(NAN)
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FRSC Corps Marshal sanctions Sector commander over worn-out tyre
FRSC Corps Marshal sanctions Sector commander over worn-out tyre
The Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Malam Shehu Mohammed, has condemned the use of a worn-out tyre on one of the corps’ patrol vehicles in Ondo State.
Mohammed ordered the immediate sanction of the Sector Commander, under whose jurisdiction the infraction occurred.
This is contained in a statement by the Corps Public Education Officer (CPEO), Olusegun Ogungbemide, on Sunday in Abuja
The FRSC boss said that the Corps had zero tolerance for any form of compromise against its core values and safety standards.
He explained that a vehicle intercepted was booked for infraction, but the Sector Commander would be made to pay the fine for his negligence, in addition to being sanction.
“The FRSC has been inundated with a very disturbing video that has gone viral on the information environment.
“This is particularly on social media; regarding one of its patrol vehicles, under the Ondo State Sector Command, captured operating with a worn out tyre.
“While we commend the public for their watch dog role over the services we provide, it is important to state without any delay that this very act is a complete negation of the corps’ core values.
“This includes, as well as, operating procedures on maximum safety standards for all operational and administrative vehicles of the Corps,”he said.
The FRSC boss reiterated the corps’ commitment to maintaining high-quality standards, especially in vehicle maintenance, and pledged to continue enhancing its safety protocols.
Mohammed said that the corps’ management would continue to supervise field commands diligently, while commanding officers were expected to uphold the corps’ ideals.
“It is therefore apt to remind the motoring public that the FRSC remains a pace-setter amongst agencies in Nigeria and we will continue to enhance on the mileages achieved in that regard over the years,” he said.(NAN)
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How I almost lost my life – Pastor Adeboye recounts encounter with death
How I almost lost my life – Pastor Adeboye recounts encounter with death
The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has recounted how he narrowly escaped death seven years ago during one of the church’s evangelism programs.
He shared the testimony of God’s grace and mercy in his life at the annual Special Holy Ghost Service, themed “Joy Unspeakable”.
Adeboye narrated how he fell critically ill due to terrible road conditions and was forced to spend Christmas Day in bed for the first time in his life.
He said his condition was so severe that he had to be airlifted from Ilesha to the camp, but local miscreants attempted to prevent the helicopter from taking off, damaging one of the windows in the process.
Despite this harrowing experience, Adeboye expressed his gratitude for God’s benevolence towards him and the ministry.
He attributed his survival to God’s grace and encouraged his congregation to thank God for sparing his life.
He said: “Seven years ago, during this same program, my body broke down completely due to the terrible road conditions. For the first time in my life, I spent Christmas Day in bed. The devil was certain he had finally got me. I collapsed in Ilesha, and to bring me back to the camp, we had to charter a helicopter. I was too weak to travel by road—if I had, I would not have made it.
“They clung to the helicopter, and in the process, one of the windows got torn. But by God’s grace, I managed to reach the camp. I had an assurance that if only I could get to the camp, I would recover. Seven years later, I am still here! I want you to thank God for sparing my life. Please, praise Him for me—give Him glory, honor, and adoration!”