• Restrains Amaewhule, others
A River State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has ordered the factional
Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Edison Ehie, to preside over activities of the legislative arm of the state, pending the determination of a motion before it.
Ehie, in Suit No. PHC/ 3030/CS/2023, which was prepared by D.I Iboroma, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and others, prayed the court to order Amaewhule and others to stop entering the state Assembly Complex until the burnt hallowed chamber is fully renovated by the government.
He also asked the court to order that he lawfully take over the speakership of the state Assembly until the matter is dispensed, praying that Amaewhule should be stopped from conducting himself as the Speaker of the House.
The presiding Judge, Justice M.W Danagogo, yesterday, in an ex parte Motion, in which Rivers State House of Assembly is the 1st claimant and Ehie, (Speaker, Rivers State House of Assembly, 2nd claimant and Martin Amaewhule, as 1st defendant while Dumle Maol is the 2nd defendant, however, granted an interim order to the requests of the applicant, ordering Amaewhule and others to stop making use of the assembly premise.
Also, the court, in the order, threatened that the 2nd Claimant, Ehie, would pay the sum of N50 million as damages if the application before the court turned out to be frivolous, ordering the claimants to serve the Interim Order, the Motion on Notice already filed, the Originating Process and other processes in this suit on the defendants on or before the 13th day of December 2023.
The court granted leave to the claimants to serve all the processes by substituted means by publication in two National Newspapers or by posting at a conspicuous part of the last known address of the Defendants and adjourned till 21 December for motion on notice.
