Fresh Trouble In Rivers As Wike-Backed Assembly Hits Ex-Speaker Loyal To Gov Fubara After He Resigned
Fresh trouble is brewing in Rivers State as the Nyesom Wike-backed State House of Assembly has issued a strong rebuttal to Hon. Edison, a former factional Speaker and loyalist of Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
The assembly asserted that he was never legitimately elected as Speaker.
Despite Edison’s resignation on December 29, 2023, from both the position of Speaker and his role as the representative for Ahaoda East Constituency 11, the Assembly’s Clerk, Emeka Amadi, emphasized in a press statement in Port Harcourt on Wednesday that Edison was never elected to the position of Speaker and had no grounds to claim resignation from such a position.
Amadi stated, “The attention of the Rivers State House of Assembly has been drawn to a letter dated 29 December 2023, addressed to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and circulating in the media. It was purportedly written and signed by Rt. Hon. Edison Ehie DSSRS – member representing Ahoada East Constituency II in the Rivers State of Assembly wherein he claimed to have resigned from the position of the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, an office he never occupied.”
He continued, “I am therefore directed to call on the good people of Rivers State to disregard the false claim in this letter that is intended to mislead the unsuspecting public. Rt. Hon. Edison Ehie DSSRS was never at any time in the life of the Rivers State House of Assembly elected a Speaker. The Office of the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly is a creation of the 1999 Constitution (As altered) and should not be ridiculed by any member who swore to preserve it and abide by the Constitution.”
Amadi further clarified the legitimate election of Rt. Hon. Martin Chike Amaewhule, DSSRS, on June 5, 2023, as the Speaker, emphasizing that Amaewhule has been dutifully performing his responsibilities since that time.
In response to the situation, Amadi said, “As a matter of fact, on Monday, the 5th day of June, 2023, after the proclamation of the 10 Rivers State House of Assembly by the Governor, and in line with Section 92 (1) of the 1999 Constitution (As altered), I, as the then Acting Clerk of the House, conducted the election that produced Rt. Hon. Martin Chike Amaewhule, DSSRS, as the Speaker of the 10 Rivers State House of Assembly by the unanimous votes of all other thirty-one (31) members sitting and present. It is also imperative to state that, from the 5th day of June, 2023, when he was elected till today, Rt. Hon. Martin Chike Amaewhule DSSRS, has been performing his duties as the Speaker.”
