The Chief Judge of Rivers State has refused a request from lawmakers to set up a panel to investigate Governor Siminalayi Fubara, citing legal “handcuffs” placed on him by the courts.
Justice Simeon Amadi told the State House of Assembly that he is legally barred from taking any steps toward an impeachment inquiry against the Governor or his deputy, Ngozi Odu.
The decision is the latest twist in a bitter and protracted power struggle that has paralysed the oil-rich state’s politics for months.
‘My hands are tied’
The Rivers State House of Assembly, led by Speaker Martins Amaewhule, had formally asked the judge to appoint a seven-member judicial panel to probe allegations of “gross misconduct” against the Governor.
However, in a letter made public on Wednesday, Justice Amadi revealed that his office had been served with two separate court orders on 16 January explicitly forbidding him from receiving or acting on such requests.
“My hand is fettered,” the Chief Judge wrote. “I am therefore legally disabled at this point from exercising my duties under the Constitution.”
A lesson from history
Justice Amadi argued that the “rule of law” requires all authorities to obey court orders, even if they disagree with them.
To support his stance, he referenced a landmark case from 2007 where the Chief Judge of Kwara State was sanctioned for ignoring a court injunction to set up a similar panel—an act that was later declared illegal by the Court of Appeal.
The judge also noted that the Speaker of the House has already challenged these restraining orders at the Court of Appeal. Under the legal doctrine of lis pendens, he argued, all parties must now wait for the higher court’s verdict before any further action is taken.
The political deadlock
The standoff in Rivers State stems from a deep rift between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who now serves as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
The state legislature remains divided into two factions, leading to a series of conflicting court rulings over who has the authority to pass laws or initiate impeachment proceedings.
Justice Amadi concluded his letter by urging the lawmakers to be “magnanimous enough” to understand his legal constraints, effectively halting the impeachment attempt for the foreseeable future.
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