• Fubara urges lawyers to defend rule of law, democracy

Legal practitioners have faulted the decision of Edo State House of Assembly to convert the resignation of its immediate past Speaker, Blessing Agbebaku, to impeachment.

Also, yesterday, they were charged to remain steadfast in defending the rule of law, constitutional democracy and fundamental human rights.

The lawyers expressed their concerns yesterday, after the Assembly altered the status of Agbebaku’s departure from resignation to impeachment.

Those who reacted included former Chief Whip of the Edo State House of Assembly, Paschal Ugbomeh; and Afebu Aigbonoga.

Ugbomeh questioned the legality of the Assembly’s action, asking what offence the lawmakers were seeking to impeach Agbebaku for after he had already resigned from office.

He said it was unclear whether the lawmakers were attempting to impeach Agbebaku as a former Speaker, stressing that a person who had voluntarily left office could no longer be removed from an office he no longer occupied.

According to him, members of the House, as lawmakers, are expected to uphold and apply the law in their actions.

“It is funny to hear that a House of Assembly impeached a former Speaker who had resigned. The man resigned and there is no office to impeach anymore, except if you are impeaching him as a former Speaker.

“They should wake up to their responsibility. I was a member of that House, and we should do the needful,” Ugbomeh said.

On his part, Aigbonoga argued that neither the 1999 Constitution, as amended, nor the established Rules of the House of Assembly expressly provides for the conversion of an earlier resignation into impeachment, particularly after a successor had assumed office.

He explained that Section 92(2)(c) of the Constitution provides for the removal of a Speaker through a two-thirds majority resolution of the House, while Section 306 deals with voluntary resignation from office.

Aigbonoga maintained that the two processes were fundamentally different, describing resignation as a voluntary relinquishment of office and impeachment as a legislative process for removing an incumbent office holder.

He said changing a resignation that had already taken effect into impeachment could create serious constitutional and legal questions.

“Once a resignation is tendered and accepted or becomes effective, the office is legally vacant, leaving no prior tenure to ‘impeach’,” he added.

GOVERNOR of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, at the opening of the 2026 Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, described the legal system as the foundation of the relationship between government, public institutions and private organisations, adding that the ultimate purpose of law was to protect and advance the security and wellbeing of citizens.

Fubara noted that this could only be achieved by ensuring equality before the law, safeguarding fundamental human rights and creating an enabling environment for socio-economic activities and national development.

The Rivers helmsman warned that disregard for the sanctity of the rule of law, democracy and good governance could lead to social disorder, noting that order, peace and meaningful human progress thrive where the law is treated as sovereign.

At the conference themed ‘Beyond Limits’, which brought together judges, lawyers and legal practitioners from across the country, Fubara maintained that courts should not be seen merely as venues for resolving disputes, but as the ultimate refuge for citizens seeking justice.

The governor urged judges to consider the wider implications of their judgments, noting that the quality of justice delivered with integrity directly affects law and order and the pace of national development.

He reiterated his administration’s commitment to the administrative and financial autonomy of the judiciary, adding that deliberate steps had been taken to improve the security and welfare of judges.