There was relief on Thursday for the Rivers State House of Assembly faction loyal to former Governor and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, as a State High Court sitting in Oyigbo declined to grant a perpetual injunction aimed at stopping the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Chibuzor Simeon Amadi, from acting on impeachment requests against Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Ordu.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued by Lere Olayinka, media aide to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
According to Olayinka, the presiding judge ruled that the court lacked the jurisdiction to issue the requested injunction because the matter is already before the Court of Appeal. The judge consequently adjourned the case indefinitely, pending the outcome of the appeal.
The ruling effectively means that the High Court will take no further steps on the matter until the appellate court delivers its judgment on issues surrounding the impeachment process initiated by the lawmakers.
Recall that Justice Amadi had earlier declined to constitute a seven-member panel to investigate the impeachment allegations, citing existing court orders restraining such action.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State House of Assembly, led by Speaker Martin Amaewhule, had served Governor Fubara with a notice of impeachment and confirmed that the notice was duly received by the Chief Judge.
The impeachment move is the latest twist in the prolonged political crisis rocking Rivers State, following the fallout between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, which has sharply divided the state legislature and intensified legal and political battles over control of the government.