By Ayo Kehinde
The high-stakes political chess game in Rivers State took a dramatic legal turn as the State Chief Judge, Justice Chibuzor Simeon-Amadi, formally declined to constitute the seven-man investigative panel sought by the House of Assembly to probe Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Nma Odu.
In a direct response to Speaker Martins Amaewhule dated January 20, 2026, the Chief Judge clarified that his hands are legally tied by subsisting court orders.
The refusal effectively puts the brakes on the impeachment proceedings that have kept the oil-rich state in a state of heightened tension for months.
Justice Amadi noted that interim injunctions issued by the High Court on January 16, 2026, explicitly restrain the Office of the Chief Judge from receiving, considering, or acting upon any impeachment-related resolutions.
These orders were the result of two separate suits filed by the Governor and his deputy to protect their mandates while legal challenges regarding the legitimacy of the Assembly’s actions are resolved.
Adding a layer of judicial complexity, the Chief Judge pointed out that the Speaker himself has already approached the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt to challenge these interim orders.
Justice Amadi maintained that under the doctrine of lis pendens, no party should take steps that would overreach the judicial process while an appeal is pending.
He warned that any attempt to bypass these hurdles would not only be a nullity but a direct assault on the rule of law.
Citing the precedent set in Hon. Dele Abiodun v. Chief Judge of Kwara State & Ors., Justice Amadi stated that he is legally disabled from exercising his duties under Section 188(5) of the Constitution until the higher courts provide clarity.
