Renowned human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has asserted that Rivers State Governor Similanayi Fubara does not possess constitutional authority to determine the meeting place of the state’s legislative assembly members. This declaration comes in response to Governor Fubara’s executive order last year, which relocated the Rivers State House of Assembly (RSHA) sittings to the government house due to a fire incident that rendered the assembly complex uninhabitable. The order only became public following a recent state high court decision prohibiting a faction of the RSHA from posing as lawmakers.
Speaking on Channels TV, Falana criticized the executive order, emphasizing the independence of the legislature from the executive branch. “The house is independent of the executive. So the governor cannot tell the house where to sit,” he stated.
Falana reinforced his argument by referring to a historical legal precedent in Nigeria: “This was very clear in the Oyo State case which led to the impeachment of Governor Ladoja whereby under the influence of the late Chief Lamidi Adedibu, the House was alleged to have sat in a hotel and the Supreme Court made that point abundantly clear that an impeachment carried out in a hotel deviates clearly from the Constitution,” he explained. Consequently, he argued that any legislative sitting outside the designated assembly complex would not be legally recognized.
According to Falana, the decision on an alternative meeting location lies solely with the duly constituted assembly members, not the governor. He highlighted the importance of adhering to the separation of powers as outlined in the constitution, noting that each government organ must recognize its powers and limitations.
Additionally, Falana pointed out that the lawmakers who shifted allegiance from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressive Congress (APC) have forfeited their seats in the legislature due to their defection, further complicating the political landscape in Rivers State.