Rivers Crisis: Appeal Court Adjourns Pro-Wike Lawmakers’ Appeal to June 20, Orders Parties to Maintain Status Quo

An Appeal Court in Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State, has postponed the hearing of an appeal filed by 27 pro-Wike lawmakers to June 20, 2024. The court has also mandated that all parties involved maintain the current situation until the appeal is heard.

The case involves 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, led by Speaker Martins Amaewhule, who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in December 2023. The lawmakers are contesting an injunction by the Rivers State High Court that restricts them from acting as lawmakers, asserting their defection was invalid.

Previously, Justice Okogbule Gbasam of the Rivers State High Court ruled that Amaewhule and the 26 other lawmakers remained PDP members. The judge stated that party membership must be proven through official registers or membership cards, not through public ceremonies or declarations. Since the lawmakers’ names were still on the PDP membership register, the court declared them PDP members.

In response, the Rivers State Government, through Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Dagogo Israel Iboroma, denied that the 27 lawmakers were still PDP members, calling the court’s assertion misleading.

During Friday’s virtual ruling, the appellate court granted the appellants’ requests to compile and transmit the Records of Appeal, and to deem their Brief of Argument as filed. The court also allowed an accelerated hearing and a stay of further proceedings at the High Court. However, it denied their request for a stay of execution and the setting aside of the interim order by the State High Court, explaining that doing so would prematurely resolve the appeal.

The Appeal Court has ordered the appellants and respondents to maintain the status quo and directed the respondents to file their briefs within 72 hours of being served. The hearing is adjourned to June 20.