The APC Progressive Mandate Group has urged an immediate stop to impeachment proceedings against Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his Deputy, Ngozi Odu, describing the move as constitutionally flawed and politically motivated.
In a statement on Thursday, signed by Ayodele Alonge, the group warned that the impeachment, initiated by the Rivers State House of Assembly, threatens to destabilize the state and undermines a peace accord personally brokered by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“The ongoing impeachment proceedings are fundamentally flawed and lack the constitutional and procedural grounding required for such a serious action,” the statement said.
The group criticized the Assembly for targeting Fubara and Odu over allegations including extra-budgetary spending, demolition of the Assembly complex, withholding funds from the Assembly Service Commission, and non-compliance with a Supreme Court directive on legislative autonomy.
Alonge emphasized that President Tinubu had mediated tensions between Governor Fubara, Minister Nyesom Wike, and the Assembly last year, resulting in a reconciliatory agreement that restored harmony in the state. “To attempt to unravel that agreement now is not only irresponsible, it is a direct challenge to the authority of the President,” the statement read.
The group also disputed claims that the Assembly had authority to challenge budget implementation under emergency rule, calling the impeachment effort legally unsound.
Highlighting Fubara’s recent defection from the PDP to the APC, Alonge noted that the governor had strengthened the party’s presence in Rivers State, encouraging other leaders and lawmakers to join the ruling party. “These developments reflect confidence in his leadership, yet the impeachment efforts threaten to undermine gains achieved through national dialogue,” he said.
The statement further accused Minister Wike and loyalists in the Assembly of using the impeachment to pursue political sabotage rather than genuine governance concerns. “The effort to destabilize Rivers stems from a faction intent on dismantling the peace that President Tinubu facilitated,” Alonge added.
The APC Progressive Mandate Group called on the National Assembly to intervene, uphold constitutional order, and ensure due process, warning that inaction could set a dangerous precedent for other states.
The group demanded an immediate halt to the impeachment and an apology to the President, describing the proceedings as a political misadventure that threatens the credibility of democratic governance in Nigeria.
