The ongoing political crisis in Rivers State has taken another turn, with lawyer Festus Ogwuche weighing in on the impeachment process against Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
According to an interview on Arise News, Ogwuche notes that the Supreme Court has linked the impeachment process to Governor Fubara’s decision to dissolve the House of Assembly, which led to a prolonged legal battle.
According to Ogwuche, the impeachment process may be premature, considering the recent Supreme Court judgment reaffirming the legitimacy of the pro-Wike lawmakers
Governor Fubara has publicly stated his intention to comply with the judgment, and some lawmakers have expressed willingness to find a lasting solution to the crisis.
Ogwuche attributes the ongoing crisis to a lack of familiarity with Nigeria’s constitutional framework, which he believes leads to misinterpretation.
The situation in Rivers State remains complex, with the governor and the lawmakers aligned with former Governor Nyesom Wike locked in a power struggle.
In his own words, “The Supreme Court has said that it was the impeachment process that made Governor Fubara to collapse the House of Assembly, and the matter went to several courts. I would say that the impeachment process is coming a little too early, because you just had the judgement of the Supreme Court some couple weeks ago, and there have been attempts by the governor, he has actually stated that he is going to abide by the judgement. Some of the members of the house have indicated that anything that will settle this matter, will settle it for good. One of the problems that we have with our constitutional framework is that people read it upside down, probably because we aren’t very familiar with the constitutional systems.”