The Ijaw Youth Council, Worldwide, has called on Governor Siminalayi Fubara to immediately appoint the former factional Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Edison Ehie, as the Chief of Staff to the state government.
The call came amid rife speculations that Fubara had appointed Ehie as his Chief of Staff….READ FULL ARTICLE
Meanwhile, our correspondent gathered that the current CoS, Chidi Amadi, a kinsman to ex-governor, Nyesom Wike, had yet to resign his appointment.
The PUNCHreports that Ehie, who opposed a plot by 27 pro-Wike lawmakers to impeach Fubara, resigned from the House of Assembly last Saturday.
Though Ehie did not give any specific reason for resigning, Fubara, speaking on Monday, said Ehie’s exit was part of calculated moves to give peace a chance and resolve the political crisis engulfing the state.
On Tuesday, speculations heightened that Fubara had appointed Ehie as his CoS.
However, efforts to confirm the development were not successful as the governor’s media aide, Boniface Onyedi, denied knowledge of the development.
But the Secretary of Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide, Maobuye Nangi-Obu, while addressing newsmen on Wednesday, urged Fubara to appoint Ehie as his Chief of Staff, saying he understood governance and the rule of law.
Nangi-Obu stated, “It is the governor’s right to appoint whomever he likes as anything.
“It is also Ehie’s right to say I have seen another opening that gives a better opportunity for my political future.
“In fact, if there is anything higher than the Chief of Staff, Ehie deserves it. The governor should quickly appoint him. He is one person that has shown character, and he is firm. Not only that he supports the governor, but also he understands the rule of law. He tries to stand for the governor, so the governor should appoint him if he has not made the appointment.”
The IYC scribe urged Wike not to blame his political miscalculation on the people of Ijaw, who, he said, were instrumental in the success of his political journey and ascension.
He said, “Ijaw people should not be painted in bad light as Wike is going about doing. In 1999, the Ijaw people supported Peter Odili to be governor. It was Asawana that made him governor. Then Asawana was jot itchy in anybody’s ears.
“In 2007, the Ijaw people stood by Rotimi Amaechi. The worst of it all is when the Ijaw that had the magic wand as regards governance, then we had Ijaw man as President, they made sure that the wrong thing was entrenched and they brought Nyesom Wike to us.
“Ijaw people chanted Asawana, killed themselves to ensure that another Ikwerre man succeeded an Ikwerre, because Patient Jonathan backed Wike. Then Asawana was not evil, Wike should not blame his political miscalculation on the people of Ijaw.”
Meanwhile, following the exit of Ehie, the Rivers State House of Assembly, on Wednesday, disclaimed that he was a factional Speaker.
The Clerk of the Assembly, Emeka Amadi, in a letter titled ‘To Whom It May Concern,’ said it was misleading to describe Ehie as a factional Speaker.
He said, “The attention of the Rivers State House of Assembly has been drawn to a letter dated 29 December 2023, addressed to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission and circulating in the media.
“It was purportedly written and signed by Rt. Hon. Edison Ehie, member representing Ahoada East Constituency II in the Rivers State of Assembly, wherein he claimed to have resigned from the position of the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, an office he never occupied.
“I am, therefore, directed to call on the good people of Rivers State to disregard the false claim in this letter that is intended to mislead the unsuspecting public. Rt. Hon. Edison Ehie was never at any time in the life of the Rivers State House of Assembly elected a Speaker.
“The Office of the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly is a creation of the 1999 Constitution (as altered) and should not be ridiculed by any member who swore to preserve it and abide by the Constitution.”
