The Rivers State House of Assembly failed to reconvene plenary on Thursday following an alleged plot by some lawmakers to impeach Speaker Martin Amaewhule, deepening the state’s ongoing political crisis, sources have said.
The Assembly had adjourned last Thursday after initiating impeachment proceedings against Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, over alleged gross misconduct.
The Amaewhule-led House accused the governor of demolishing the Assembly complex and authorising expenditure without legislative approval, among other allegations. It consequently directed the Clerk of the House to serve an impeachment notice on the governor, giving him seven days to respond.
Plenary was scheduled to resume on Thursday, January 15, 2026. However, journalists who visited the Assembly’s temporary sitting venue - the conference hall of its legislative quarters along Aba Road, Port Harcourt - found no indication that the House would sit.
No official explanation was offered for the absence of plenary, and there was no information on when lawmakers would reconvene.
Efforts to reach the Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Petitions and Complaints, Dr Eneme George, were unsuccessful, as he neither answered calls nor responded to a text message as of the time of filing this report.
Sources said the failure to sit followed reports that some lawmakers planned to move against Amaewhule during plenary, amid growing dissent within the Assembly over the impeachment of the governor.
Between Monday and Wednesday, four lawmakers formally withdrew from the impeachment process, calling for dialogue and a political resolution of the crisis.
Earlier in the week, the Minority Leader, Sylvanus Nwankwo (Omuma Constituency), and Peter Abbey (Degema Constituency) publicly announced their withdrawal from the impeachment move at a news briefing in Port Harcourt, urging their colleagues to embrace peace.
Similarly, on Wednesday, two female lawmakers - Barile Nwakoh (Khana Constituency I) and Emilia Amadi (Obio/Akpor Constituency II)- appealed to the House to discontinue the impeachment proceedings.
While calling for a political solution, the lawmakers commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike, for their interventions in the crisis.
However, they accused Governor Fubara and his deputy of constitutional infractions and alleged that the governor had failed to honour agreements reached under the supervision of the President.
They urged their colleagues to pursue reconciliation, provided the governor assured them of adherence to the agreements and commitment to governing in line with the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
Several groups, including the Pan Niger Delta Forum and the Rivers State Elders and Leaders Forum, have also intervened, setting up committees aimed at resolving the rift between Chief Wike and his estranged political ally and successor, Governor Fubara.
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