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By Oscar Okhifo, Abuja
The Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Martins Amaewhule, on Thursday declared Governor Siminalayi Fubara a “mistake” and a threat to democracy as lawmakers formally commenced impeachment proceedings against him over alleged gross misconduct.
Amaewhule made the declaration during plenary on Thursday, which he presided over, after the Majority Leader, Major Jack, formally read a notice of impeachment allegations against the governor.
The notice, endorsed by 26 lawmakers, accused Fubara of acts amounting to gross misconduct and violations of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The decision to commence impeachment followed the Assembly’s move to shelve its earlier plan to resume plenary on January 26, opting instead to reconvene immediately to consider the allegations against the governor.
In the notice of allegations, the lawmakers accused Governor Fubara of converting state funds into foreign currency and allegedly engaging individuals in Abuja to influence President Bola Tinubu to prevail on the Assembly not to summon him to present the 2026 budget.
Amaewhule said the notice would be served on the governor within seven days in line with constitutional provisions, stressing that the action marked the formal commencement of the impeachment process.
He warned that any attempt by the governor to present the 2026 appropriation bill or the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) while investigations into the allegations were ongoing would not halt the impeachment proceedings.
“The particulars of gross misconduct have a lot to do with refusal to present a budget and spending outside the appropriation law,” the Speaker said.
He added that the Assembly would allow the constitutional process to run its full course, noting that the motion expressly advised the governor to refrain from presenting budget documents until the investigation into the allegations against him and the deputy governor was concluded.
Amaewhule accused Fubara of deliberately refusing to present the budget, insisting that the governor had ample opportunity to do so but chose not to.
“In any case, the governor does not want to present any budget, because if he wanted to, he would have brought it all this while.
“Siminalayi Fubara is a mistake; Rivers State has never had it this bad,” he said.
The Speaker further claimed that Fubara and his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, were the only sub-national executives in Nigeria yet to present the 2026 appropriation bill.
“In the entirety of Nigeria, Siminalayi Fubara and the deputy governor are the only ones in office at the sub-national level that are yet to present the 2026 appropriation bill,” he stated.
Amaewhule also accused the governor of undermining the legislature, alleging that Fubara had boasted of seeking presidential intervention to restrain the Assembly and had described the 10th Rivers State House of Assembly as a “toothless bulldog.”
“This is a sad commentary for our democracy. Sir Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy are nothing but a threat to democracy, and if they are left in office, I don’t know what will happen,” the Speaker said.
Amaewhule said several meetings involving President Bola Tinubu and the former governor of the state, now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, had been held to resolve the political impasse, but noted that the governor’s continued refusal to present the 2026 budget ultimately compelled the Assembly to initiate impeachment proceedings.