Rivers Lawmakers Allegedly Capitalizing on Fubara Impeachment for Self-Benefit

Siminalayi Fubara, the governor of Rivers State, has been cleared of any misbehavior that would have led to his removal from office by the Good Governance Advocacy Centre (GGAC), an independent civic watchdog.

The group called the current impeachment procedures against the governor and his deputy a political witch-hunt motivated more by self-interest than by constitutional violations in a statement released on Thursday.

The organization said that a 72-hour forensic examination of the impeachment notice and related accusations turned up no proof of egregious misbehavior in a statement signed by Zaccheus Ocha, its national representative.

The Rivers State House of Assembly’s concerns were “manifestly weak, speculative, and politically motivated,” according to GGAC, which conducted a “exhaustive legal, procedural, and factual analysis” of the matter.

GGAC claims that the impeachment letter did not meet the fundamental constitutional level needed to initiate removal procedures, pointing out that the accusations were either unsupported by verifiable facts or clearly lay within the executive branch’s discretionary powers.

“After a 72-hour independent review, the Good Governance Advocacy Center has concluded that there is no act of gross misconduct established against Governor Siminalayi Fubara or his deputy,” the statement said.

“In essence, what is presented as impeachment is a political project aimed at factional and personal gains rather than the defense of constitutional order.”

According to the group, its analysis included the impeachment notice’s content, pertinent constitutional clauses, financial documents that lawmakers mentioned, and the executive branch’s public acts since the administration’s inception. It further stated that none of the allegations satisfied the “grave violation or misconduct” criterion outlined in Section 188 of the constitution.

GGAC described the situation as a continuation of unresolved power battles rather than a true accountability process and connected the impeachment move to the governor’s ongoing political conflict with his predecessor, Nyesom Wike.

The course of events in Rivers State indicates that the impeachment process is not taking place in a political vacuum.

The statement said, “Our analysis shows that the legislative actions against Governor Fubara are deeply rooted in the post-transition power struggle following the exit of the former governor, Nyesom Wike, and the resistance to the governor’s efforts to assert institutional independence.”

The organization noted that impeachment was being used as a coercive tool to compel political acquiescence and that the house of assembly had turned into “a proxy battlefield” in a larger fight to maintain control over state structures.

“Constitutional institutions cannot be abused to settle disputes between current and former political leaders. According to GGAC, impeachment is an extraordinary remedy rather than a tool for resolving succession issues or enforcing allegiance.

The advocacy group said that using impeachment as a weapon to further political agendas would seriously jeopardize democratic stability nationwide as well as in Rivers.

According to the statement, “our findings show a deliberate attempt to use legislative overreach to intimidate the executive and destabilize governance in Rivers state.”

GGAC further stated that no court order had been broken and no criminal offense had been shown, citing a number of claims that listed administrative choices that were unquestionably within the governor’s legal jurisdiction, such as financial acts and appointments.

It also criticized the speed at which the impeachment process was started, claiming that it presented grave questions regarding fairness and due process. According to the group, their investigation showed “clear procedural red flags,” such as a predetermined decision and insufficient time for responding.

“The conclusion that the process is punitive rather than corrective is reinforced by the rush to impeachment, without sincere effort at dialogue or reconciliation,” the statement stated.

The group cautioned that carrying out the impeachment might cause long-term instability in Rivers, divert attention from governance, and jeopardize the oil-producing state’s security and economic priorities.

In order to stop what it called a “avoidable constitutional crisis engineered by political brinkmanship,” it urged respectable political figures, elders, and members of civil society to step in and urged parliamentarians to immediately halt the procedures and embrace dialogue.

“An additional season of artificial instability is not necessary for Rivers State. Citizens’ interests must come before individual aspirations and unsolved political grievances, according to GGAC.

The group emphasized that impeachment procedures must be rigorously governed by the law and not by the influence of influential political players working behind the scenes. It also called on national democratic institutions to keep a close eye on events.

How power is used and controlled determines how credible Nigeria’s democracy is. Public confidence in democratic institutions is undermined when impeachment is used as a negotiating tool in elite power conflicts, according to the statement.

The state house of assembly’s decision to start impeachment procedures against Fubara and Odu, which has elicited conflicting responses from political players and civil society organizations, has increased political tension in Rivers.

Legislators, stakeholders, and the general public will have access to GGAC’s whole analytical study, which maintains that the only way to achieve democratic stability is via openness, moderation, and rigorous respect to constitutional principles.