The Rivers House of Assembly has put on hold the impeachment proceedings against governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Odu.
The Rivers lawmakers took the decision during plenary on Thursday in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
Lawmakers loyal to Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), commenced impeachment proceedings against Fubara and Odu.
The lawmakers accused Fubara and his deputy of budgetary impropriety, failure to present the 2026 appropriation bill to the assembly, unauthorised expenditure of public funds, and withholding statutory allocations to the legislature.
The impeachment notice was signed by 26 lawmakers.
But a High Court in the state issued an interim order restraining the state’s chief judge from receiving or acting on any impeachment notice.
Subsequently, the chief judge of the state, Simeon Amadi, declined to constitute a judicial panel to investigate Fubara over the allegations.
Amadi said that Martin Amaewhule, speaker of the assembly, had lodged an appeal against the interim orders at the court of appeal in Port Harcourt, noting that the notices of appeal were served on his office on January 19 and 20.
On February 9, President Bola Tinubu met with Fubara and Wike at the presidential villa over the lingering political crisis in Rivers.
Speaking with journalists on February 10, Wike assured Nigerians that the president’s intervention would effectively resolve the issue.
“This is the second time Mr President is intervening and I believe by the grace of God that this will be the last time Mr President will intervene,” Wike said.
