Fubara’s Loyalist Withdraws Suit Against 25 Rivers Lawmakers

A former factional Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Edison Ehie, has withdrawn a suit he filed against 25 lawmakers who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress.

Ehie, a former lawmaker who represented Ahoada East Constituency 2 in the State Assembly had instituted contempt proceedings in Suit No. PHC/3638/CS/2023, at a State High Court in Port Harcourt, challenging their sittings and legislative activities after their seats were declared vacant.

The former lawmaker and others had instituted the case against Martins Amaewhule and 24 others.

She was the leader of a group of four lawmakers loyal to Governor Siminalayi Fubara, opposed to the impeachment of the latter by the majority of the lawmakers loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.


Ehie, later resigned his position in the House of Assembly following the peace deal reached between Fubara and Wike.

When the matter came up for a hearing of applications pending before the court on Thursday, counsel for the claimant, Mac-Barango, informed the court about a notice of discontinuance filed by his clients.

He applied that the court should give effect to the said notice.

The defence counsel, Chief Ferdinand Orbih, Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Emeka Onyeka, did not object to the application.

The presiding judge, F. A. Fiberesima, under the said application by claimants’ counsel, struck out the suit accordingly.

PUNCH reports that on December 29, 2023, Ehie, had written to the Independent National Electoral Commission on his resignation as the Speaker of the State House of Assembly and the lawmaker representing Ahoada Constituency II.

Our correspondent reports that one of the resolutions reached on the political crisis in the state following the intervention of President Bola Tinubu was for all parties to withdraw all pending matters in court.