A Rivers High Court sitting in Oyigbo Local Government Area has stepped into the escalating political crisis in the state, issuing an interim injunction that temporarily halts further action on the impeachment process against Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Nma-Odu.
In a ruling delivered in Port Harcourt, the court restrained the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule, alongside thirty-two other defendants — including the Clerk of the House and the Chief Judge of Rivers State—from taking steps aimed at advancing the impeachment process.
Specifically, the order barred the Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor-Amadi, from receiving, forwarding, considering, or acting on any request, resolution, or impeachment-related document from the Assembly for the purpose of constituting an investigative panel, pending the determination of the matter. The injunction is to subsist for seven days.
The order was granted by Justice Florence Fiberesima following the hearing of a motion ex parte filed separately by Governor Fubara and his deputy. In the two suits—marked OYHC/7/CS/2026 and OYHC/6/CS/2026—the court also granted the claimants leave to serve the interim order and other originating processes on the first to the thirty-first defendants by pasting them at the gate of the Rivers State Assembly quarters.
The court also directed that the Chief Judge, listed as the thirty-second defendant, be served through any staff of the judiciary at his chambers within the court premises.
Justice Fiberesima thereafter adjourned the matter to January 23, 2026, for hearing of the motion on notice, as the legal battle over the impeachment move shifts from the political arena to the courtroom.
On Friday, the Rivers State House of Assembly had called on the Chief Judge of the state to set up a panel to investigate the allegations of gross misconduct against Governor Fubara and his deputy.
The assembly members, who made the call through a unanimous vote, vowed to continue with the impeachment process.
The lawmakers had earlier addressed a press conference in Port Harcourt, where they accused Fubara of allegedly using blackmail.
Addressing journalists, the deputy speaker, Dumle Maol, claimed Fubara lacked the trust needed to address the crisis rocking the oil-rich state.
They accused the governor of infringing on the 1999 Constitution, saying the parliament was left with no other choice but to apply their legislative power by impeaching him from office.
The lawmakers also claimed the governor and his deputy had resorted to intimidating the parliament.
They, however, thanked President Bola Tinubu for wading into the crisis.
The members also called on the Speaker, Martin Amaewhule, to reconvene the House.
Their position came weeks after they initiated an impeachment process against Fubara and Odu. The lawmakers are accusing them of gross negligence, a move that has heightened political tension in the coastal state.
Four Rivers assembly lawmakers make U-turn, recommit to Fubara’s impeachment
Four members of the Rivers state house of assembly have reversed their earlier stance and reaffirmed support for the impeachment process against Siminalayi Fubara, governor of the state, and Ngozi Odu, his deputy.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital, the lawmakers said Fubara has shown no remorse over the allegations levelled against him by the assembly.
Earlier on Monday, Sylvanus Nwankwo, the house minority leader who represents Omuma state constituency, and Peter Abbey of Degema state constituency, asked the assembly to suspend Fubara’s impeachment and explore alternatives to his removal from office.
Two days later, on Wednesday, Barile Nwakoh, the deputy minority leader representing Khana constituency I, and Emilia Amadi, who represents Obio/Akpor constituency II, also appealed to their colleagues to halt the impeachment process in the interest of peace and stability.
Nwankwo, who was flanked by his colleagues, said they decided to reverse their position after realising that the governor and his deputy were unwilling to govern in accordance with the constitution.
“We made a plea to our colleagues to seek a political solution to the issues between the Rivers state house of assembly and the governor, but while that appeal was pending, we observed that the governor and his deputy deployed media aides to continuously attack the Rivers state house of assembly, rather than seek a political resolution to this matter,” Nwankwo said.
“We have rescinded our plea; the impeachment process should continue.”
Also speaking, Amadi claimed that Fubara interpreted their appeal for restraint as a sign of weakness.
“We had earlier resolved to consider a political solution, but the governor and deputy governor are ignoring the house and pushing us into the background,” she said.
Recurring rifts between the executive and the legislature, compounded by the latest impeachment moves, have intensified political tensions in the state.
The majority of the Rivers lawmakers are loyal to Nyesom Wike, minister of the federal capital territory (FCT), who has been campaigning against Fubara’s re-election bid after accusing the governor of breaching a peace agreement they both signed before President Bola Tinubu lifted the emergency rule in Rivers.