Enemi Alabo George, one of the 25 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly who dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC), has said they all have no plan to return to the PDP.
He also said Governor Siminalayi Fubara signed the eight-point resolution at the Presidential Villa on Monday, contrary to insinuations that he didn’t sign the document, adding that the governor even gave a speech after he signed.
Speaking in an interview on Channels TV on Wednesday night, George, who is the chairman of the House Committee on Information, insisted that there was division in the PDP and that there was no going back on their decision.
Asked if the 25 members would return to the PDP since a peace deal had been brokered between the warring parties, George stated, “We have crossed that Rubicon. We are not going back there. No, we moved to the APC. Other than the division issue in our party, we voted for Mr. President, and if we found the President worthy of our vote, then I think we should find him worthy of our support.
“We have moved over to join his ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ and we are hand in glove with him to ensure that the expectations of Nigerians are fulfilled. So, we have moved to the APC, we are working with Mr. President, we have crossed that Rubicon and there is no going back for us.”
George also spoke on the controversy that surrounded the eight-point resolution presided over by President Bola Tinubu, with many describing the document as mere paper that has no legal backing, while some described the President as a dictator.
He stressed that the governor signed the document.
When asked about the peace meeting and the number of people present, he said there were a lot of people at the meeting, adding, “I’m sure we were between 100 and 200, but I’m not certain about that (figure). We had members of the House of National Assembly, members of the House of Assembly, the governor, commissioners, the deputy governor, elder statesmen, two former governors, traditional rulers, chairman of the Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council, elders and opinion leaders in the state. It was massive.”
Asked if the governor signed the document, he stated, “This was how it went; for every item that was considered, the President gave both parties the option of controverting or agreeing. So each item was deliberated upon. So, for item one, they would ask, do you agree, then people would respond ‘yes I agree’, or ‘no I don’t agree’. Same for other items until the items were exhausted.
“At the end of all the deliberations, parties were asked to come up and append their signatures to that document. Then Mr. President said, ‘do I have your approval to release this document to the press?’ Everybody echoed yes, so everybody signed on the document and then we moved forward.
“The governor was there, the governor signed, the governor made a speech after the meeting that he was committed to the agreement. Mr. Speaker (Martins Amaewhule) also made a speech and committed to accepting all the terms of the agreement and committing to work with that document.”
Rivers Lawmakers Withdraw Impeachment Notice Against Gov. Fubara
Meanwhile, twenty-four lawmakers of the Rivers State House of Assembly led by Rt. Hon. Martins Amaewhule as speaker on Wednesday withdrew their impeachment notice on the Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
The lawmakers loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, had on October 30 attempted an impeachment on the state governor, sparking a leadership tussle at the state Assembly.
Rt. Hon. Martins Amaewhule and Rt. Hon. Ehie Edison had been at loggerheads over the speakership of the House.
Four lawmakers loyal to the governor following the failed impeachment attempt, convened and impeached Amaewhule from the position of the speaker and elected Edison the new speaker.
This was as a state High Court presided over by Justice M.W. Danagogo recently recognised Edison as the authentic speaker of the House.
A statement signed by Martins Wachukwu, media aide to the speaker, Rivers State House of Assembly, on Wednesday, stated that the lawmakers took the decision at a plenary held at the auditorium of the House of Assembly Quarters on Aba Road, Port Harcourt.
The statement said the move was in pursuance to the truce between Governor Fubara, Nyesom Wike and the Martin Amaewhule led lawmakers brokered by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on December 18 in Abuja.
According to the statement, Hon. Martin Chike Amaewhule, while reading a letter on the floor of the House, signed by 24 members, recalled that on October 30, 2023, a notice of impeachment signed by 24 members of the House pursuant to Section 188 of the 1999 constitution as altered was read by him, accusing the governor of gross misconduct.
Amaewhule emphasised that the lawmakers following their immense respect for the president decided to abide by the terms of agreement he brokered without delay, adding that the House would continue to perform its constitutional functions of law making and oversight for the development of the state.
The statement noted that the House considered further report of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Aleto Oil Spill, recalled that in August, 2023 the committee submitted its report on an oil spill in Aleto community caused by equipment failure.
Remarking on the report, Amaewhule commended the committee for following up the resolutions of the House on the initial report and urged the committee to continue and ensure that proper and full remediation is effected.
