The Rivers Assembly moved to screen nine Fubara commissioner candidates

The Rivers State House of Assembly has officially acknowledged receipt of the list of new commissioner candidates forwarded by Governor Siminalayi Fubara and has invited the nine appointees for screening and possible confirmation.

This development comes about three weeks after the governor partially dissolved his cabinet, dismissing eight commissioners who were unaffected by the Supreme Court decision recognizing Martin Amaewhule as the legitimate Speaker of the Assembly. Fubara also relieved all his special advisers of their duties in the reshuffle.

The newly submitted list is thought to represent the first wave of nominees, and additional names are expected to follow as the State Executive Council reconstitutes.

A special government announcement dated March 3 and signed by the Clerk of the House of Representatives, Dr Emeka Amadi, formally invited candidates to begin documentation before the screening exercise.

The statement read: “The Rivers State House of Assembly hereby invites candidates for appointment as commissioners and members of the Rivers State Executive Council to submit forty (40) sets of Curriculum Vitaes, photocopies of credentials and proof of compliance with tax obligations.

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“The nominees are: Professor Datonye Alasia, Mr Tonye Bellgam, Professor Temple Nwofor, Dr Peters Nwagor, Mrs Charity Deemua, Tamuno Williams, Mr Lekue Kenneth, Otonye Amachree and Amairigha Edward Hart.

“All documents must be forwarded to the office of the Registrar of the House of Representatives at the Rivers State House of Assembly.”

Although the Assembly has initiated the administrative process, it has not announced a specific date for screening the candidates.

Efforts to get clarification from the Chair of the House Information and Complaints Committee, Enemi George, were unsuccessful as of Tuesday evening, as phone calls, text messages and WhatsApp questions went unanswered.

Interestingly, none of the commissioners who were previously removed by the governor appeared on the new list, thus strengthening indications of a significant cabinet reconfiguration.

This political recalibration follows months of tension between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory. The two leaders are believed to have reached a truce following the intervention of President Bola Tinubu.

Tinubu has also directed the termination of the impeachment process initiated against Fubara and his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, by 27 MPs allied with Wike. In response, Speaker Amaewhule announced that the House had withdrawn the notice of impeachment in line with the President’s directives.

With the screening process now underway, attention is turning to the next steps taken by the Assembly and whether further nominees will be put forward to complete the reconstitution of the country’s cabinet.