Breaking: Rivers Assembly Issues Arrest Warrant Against Top Public Official, Details Emerge
- The Rivers state house of assembly has issued a warrant for the chairman of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), Justice Adolphus Enebeli (rtd), to appear before it
- The Martins Amaewhule-led Assembly issued the arrest warrant on Monday, March 10, during plenary, after the expiration of its 72-hour ultimatum for the electoral chief to appear before the House
- Enebeli had fixed August 9, 2025, to conduct a fresh local government (LG) poll in the state following a Supreme Court verdict that annulled the October 5, 2024 local government poll conducted in the state
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering politics, elections, and governance in Nigeria.
Port Harcourt, Rivers state - The Rivers state house of assembly has issued a warrant of arrest against the chairman of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), Justice Adolphus Enebeli.
As reported on Monday, March 10, by Leadership, this follows Enebeli's alleged refusal to appear before the house.
Source: Twitter
Channels Television also noted the development.
Martins Amaewhule-led house had during its plenary on Monday, issued the arrest warrant after the expiration of its 72-hour ultimatum for Enebeli to appear before the house. Amaewhule is an ally of Nyesom Wike, the federal capital territory (FCT) minister.
RSIEC had fixed August 9, 2025, to conduct a fresh local government election in the state following a Supreme Court verdict that annulled the October 5, 2024, LG polls conducted in the state.
In the election, the Action Peoples Party (APP) was declared the winner of 22 chairmanship seats out of the 23 local government areas of the states.
Lingering political crisis in Rivers state
Oil-rich Rivers state has been engulfed in crisis since October 2023 after some lawmakers loyal to minister Wike initiated impeachment proceedings against Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
The power tussle between the governor and his predecessor (and former godfather) has since split the 31-member assembly into two warring factions. That development led to the bombing of a section of the state assembly complex.
Meanwhile, Fubara has spent most of his time mired in political survival at the expense of governance and development of the state.
Similarly, Wike has spent more time on the politics of Rivers state than on his primary assignment in Abuja.
Source: Facebook
Read more on Rivers' crisis:
- Rivers crisis: Supreme Court document explains why Governor Fubara is at fault
- Wike vs Fubara: Supreme Court document explains actual status of 27 lawmakers
- “It has gotten to a point”: Fubara talks tough as he sends message to pro-Wike lawmakers
- Rivers crisis: Fubara reacts to impeachment reports amid Supreme Court's judgment
Rivers electoral boss should avoid ‘hide and seek' – Oshoma
Lawyer and advocate for good governance, Liborous Oshoma has criticised Justice Adolphus Enebeli for refusing to appear before the state House of Assembly despite being summoned.
"Being a former judge, he is further aggravating the problems of the governor," Oshoma told Legit.ng.
He emphasised that under Sections 128 and 129 of the Nigerian Constitution, the state assembly has the power to summon any individual in matters related to lawmaking, corruption eradication, and accountability.
"Being the Chairman of the state electoral body whose members have appeared before the house of assembly, he should save himself the stress and embarrassment from some young boys who probably were in secondary school when he was a judge, instead of all these hide and seek games," he said.
Oshoma advised Enebeli to either honor the invitation or formally request an extension, especially since President Bola Tinubu is intervening in the political crisis.
"The best thing for him to do would be to appear before the committee or plead for an extension of time between which to appear, since the president is already intervening and meeting with the parties involved," he concluded.
Fubara: Pro-Wike lawmakers revive impeachment plot
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Rivers state house of assembly accused Governor Fubara of violating the Nigerian constitution.
The lawmakers accused Fubara of appointing people to serve as commissioners without their approval.
The accusation against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governor came two days after the pro-Wike lawmakers—in a letter signed by the speaker, Amaewhule—handed Fubara 48 hours to present the 2025 budget to them and five days after Wike said the governor has committed impeachable offences.
Editorial assistant Ololade Olatimehin provided exclusive commentary from a constitutional lawyer for this report.
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Source: Legit.ng
