Dagogo Israel Iboroma, SAN, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Rivers State, has condemned what he described as misleading reports in both social and electronic media regarding the events at the Supreme Court on Monday.
Iboroma clarified that the Supreme Court did not reinstate Martins Amaewhule and 26 other members to the Rivers State House of Assembly. He, having attended the court proceedings in case SC/CV/1701/2024, stated that Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State had withdrawn his case against the Rivers State House of Assembly and 15 other parties involved.
The Attorney General further explained that the defection of Martins Amaewhule and the 26 others was not part of the court’s deliberations nor an issue under consideration in the appeals.
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He emphasized that the key matter in Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/1613/2023 was the 2024 Appropriation Law.
Iboroma pointed out that on November 29, 2023, Martins Amaewhule and others filed Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/1613/2023 at the Federal High Court in Abuja, and by December 11, 2023, while the case was still pending, Amaewhule and 26 others defected from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The AG explained that this defection led to the automatic loss of their seats in the Rivers State House of Assembly.
The statement reads in part: “Furthermore, before judgment was delivered in Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/1613/2023, Martins Amaewhule and 26 others did not inform the court that they had defected from PDP to APC.
“We are in the year 2025, with a 2025 Appropriation Bill already passed, signed into law, and in operation.
“The Appropriation Law 2024 is now totally spent and cannot be brought back into operation. The monies in the Appropriation Law 2024, having been spent, cannot be recalled and spent again.
“The Appropriation Law 2024, being spent by reason of its expiration, rendered SC/CV/1701/2024 merely academic and of no utilitarian value.
“The appellant, in keeping with the time-honored practice of not wasting precious judicial time, filed a notice of withdrawal of his appeal and freely urged the Honourable Court to dismiss his appeal. Accordingly, the Honourable Court granted the prayer sought and dismissed the appeal. This is all that transpired.
“The Supreme Court made no order whatsoever reinstating Martins Chike Amaewhule and 26 others as members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, nor did the Supreme Court make any finding on their status as members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.”
He, however, urged the public to disregard the inaccurate narrative and propaganda being circulated by Martins Amaewhule and his legal team concerning the events at the Supreme Court on Monday.
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