Why we restored Martins Amaewhule-led Rivers State House of Assembly – Supreme Court 

The apex court in the 62-page Certified True Copy, CTC, of its judgment obtained by journalists on Thursday in Abuja,  insisted that the formation of the Assembly must be  in compliance with the 1999 Constitution.

It held that there was no evidence that the 27 lawmakers defected from the PDP to the APC, noting that the constitution does not support Fubara’s recognition of only four members as the authentic House of Assembly.

The 27 lawmakers are loyalists of of Nyesom Wike, the Minister the Federal Capital Territory,  FCT, and immediate past governor of the state with whom Fubara, his political godson, has been at loggerheads over the control of the state.

The court explained that Fubara initially accused the 27 lawmakers of defecting but later “voluntarily withdrew the allegations” at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Therefore, the apex court held that since the allegation was withdrawn, “no defection had taken place,” and the Assembly must continue as it was.

The judgment stated that it would be “unlawful” for Fubara to engage with any Assembly other than the one led by Martins Amaewhule.

“What is clear from the above concurrent findings is that the eighth 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 CTC read.

“The doctrine of necessity cannot be invoked to justify the continued existence of a deliberately contrived illegal or unconstitutional status quo… 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.

“A government cannot be said to exist without one of the three arms that make up the Government of a State under the 1999 Constitution… 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.”