Nigerian Lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, has said that Nigerian governors are more dictatorial and more corrupt than the President, and as such, there is no House of Assembly in Nigeria that is able to challenge or oppose governors.
Effiong said this in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday while discussing the Supreme Court ruling on the Rivers State cases before it, where it dismissed the appeal by Governor Siminalayi Fubara against the judgement ordering him to re-present the state’s 2024 appropriation before the faction of the State House of Assembly led by Rt Hon. Martin Amaewhule, and reserved judgement in four separate appeals.
Effiong, reacting to this judgement, said, “I think Fubara clearly knows that this is the fight of survival. He knows that there is no alternative to what is going on. And I restate my position that I don’t see a political solution to what is going on. Now, I understand the Rivers State government had made a statement to clarify that some of the points I have earlier made, that the withdrawal of the appeal and the dismissal of same had nothing to do with the question of defection. I don’t expect the governor to do anything beyond what is going on, because at the end of the day, in the final analysis, this is a fight between Wike and Fubara.
“Why this is such an embarrassment for me as a Nigerian, why this is particularly painful to some of us that have interest in the development of this country, is that in the midst of this crisis, we are having two political gladiators when the people of Rivers State, what is basically of interest to them, is provision of infrastructure, education, health, and basic issues of governance. But we are now being distracted because some lawmakers feel that their loyalty lies with their godfather, Nyesom Wike. Why should lawmakers of Nigeria still be holding to governors?
He then likened the Rivers political turmoil to similar scenarios playing out in Lagos and Zamfara States, claiming that governors maintain firm control over their legislatures, leaving no room for genuine opposition or accountability.
He said, “Let us not discuss this matter in isolation. The same thing is playing out in Lagos State, the same thing is playing out in Zamfara. And I have said it publicly, governors in Nigeria are more dictatorial than the President. Governors in Nigeria are more corrupt than the President. The only reason why we always speak about Abuja is that at that level, there is more power and there are more resources. But if you look at it in comparative terms, there is no House of Assembly in Nigeria today, I challenge you, that can hold a governor accountable, not one. At the Federal level, you can even have some lawmakers pretend to be in opposition. You can have someone raise a motion pretending to be scrutinising a President. You don’t have that at the state level.”
“Assuming that these lawmakers were following Fubara, nobody would be in court today,” he added.
Effiong went on to characterise the ongoing Rivers crisis as an “interplay of law and politics,” noting that while legal arguments are being made in court, the underlying issue remains political.
“This is a battle between Wike and Fubara. But in the midst of that battle, of course, the court also has a responsibility to clarify what the law is; Who is the speaker of the House of Assembly, who has power to make law for the people of Rivers State? These are some of the questions that have been submitted to the court for adjudication. But just to be clear, the discontinuance, the dismissal of the appeal, because at the level of the Supreme Court, when you file a notice to discontinue an appeal, particularly when issues have been joined, when parties have filed and exchanged briefs of arguments, the only natural consequence is that the appeal will be dismissed. That does not mean that the court has made a determination on the question,” he said.
Effiong also addressed the issue of the lawmakers’ defection, which remains a critical point of contention, saying that he believes that the case has no political solution as he explained, “The question of defection arose after the issue of the budget, and that question of defection is still a subject of adjudication. Nigerians saw it, we all saw the videos where people announced their defection. So, those are issues that the court will have to determine, because the precedents have been clear from 2007,… reaffirmed in 2014 in Abegunde and Ondo State House of Assembly, that the issue of defection is automatic.
“Once you defect, the reparation of law, by virtue of section 109, sub section 1, paragraph g, is that you lose your seat automatically. So, this question of defection will ultimately be the determinative point in the entire Rivers crisis. I don’t think there’s a political solution to this.
“The President attempted that and failed, and it was destined to fail. You cannot be mediating, and you are subjecting a governor to a condition that violates the constitution. You are telling a governor ‘you cannot sack certain commissioners.’ You’re telling a governor ‘you have to subject certain gubernatorial decisions to the whims and approval of a third party.’ So, the President, in subjecting Fubara to those conditions, knew that he was sending him to the jungle, and he knew that these conditions were never going to be met. And the governor, on his own, claimed he had tried to meet some of these conditions and failed. So ultimately, the court will have to resolve this matter, and I am believing and am hoping that in doing so, the court will look at the matter objectively, the court will look at the matter in a way that everybody will see that justice has been done.”
Effiong then lamented that while political battles rage on, governance in Rivers State has suffered. He called for a judicial resolution that prioritises the interests of the people over political power struggles.
He said, “Regarding the other matters that are pending before the Supreme Court, my expectation and wish for the people of Rivers State, is that in the final analysis, this matter will be resolved in a way that the people will begin to see governance, because this is all a distraction. While we are having all these debates, there are real governance issues that need to be attended to in Rivers State.
“There are real governance issues that the minister of the FCT should be attending to, should be concerned about. Why is he, I mean, he spent 8 years for crying out loud. Nobody could talk to him, nobody could oppose him. He left, he brought in Fubara, and now Fubara comes and is saying he wants to have his own way, and you are saying it must be the way you want it to be.”
