A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has adjourned indefinitely the suit filed by Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Professor Ngozi Nma-Odu, challenging the impeachment process initiated against them by members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
Justice Florence Fiberesima of the Oyigbo High Court ordered the adjournment on Friday after confirming that appeals relating to the matter had already been entered before the Court of Appeal.
The governor and his deputy had approached the court to contest the impeachment steps reportedly commenced by the Speaker of the House, Martin Chike-Amaewhule, and 26 other lawmakers. They are seeking judicial intervention to halt the process, arguing that due process was not followed.
When the case was called, counsel to the Speaker and 27 lawmakers, S.I. Amen, SAN, informed the court that an appeal had been duly filed against earlier rulings in the case. He orally applied for a stay of proceedings pending the determination of the appeal by the appellate court.
The application was not opposed by Paul Orikoro, SAN, counsel to Governor Fubara and his deputy. Similarly, Lawrence Oko-Jaja, representing the 28th to 30th defendants—Oko Jumbo, Sokari Goodboy, and Orubienimigha Timothy—raised no objection.
In her ruling, Justice Fiberesima noted that two separate appeals had been entered in respect of the case. She held that in view of the pending appeals, it was appropriate to adjourn the matter sine die to allow the Court of Appeal to first determine the issues brought before it.
The latest development marks another turn in the political and legal tussle surrounding the leadership crisis in the state.
Earlier, the same High Court had granted an interim injunction restraining the Speaker and 32 other defendants, including the Clerk of the House, from forwarding any articles of impeachment or related documents to the Chief Judge of Rivers State.
The court had also restrained the Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor-Amadi, from receiving or acting on any communication relating to the impeachment for the purpose of constituting an investigative panel into allegations of misconduct against the governor and his deputy. The order was to subsist for seven days.
The impeachment proceedings stem from allegations of gross misconduct leveled against Governor Fubara and Professor Nma-Odu by lawmakers aligned with the Speaker amid the lingering political crisis in the state.
With the matter now before the appellate court, the legal battle is expected to shift to the Court of Appeal, where key constitutional questions regarding the impeachment process and the powers of the state legislature are likely to be examined.
Observers say the outcome of the appeals could significantly shape the next phase of the political standoff in Rivers State, as both sides continue to assert their positions within the framework of the law.
By Nzeuzor Jane and Maduadugwo, Jane Port-Harcourt
