The Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi, has officially declined to constitute a judicial panel to investigate Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Nma Odu, over allegations of gross misconduct, citing extant court orders that legally bar him from doing so.
In a letter dated January 20, 2026 and addressed to Rt. Hon. Martin Amaewhule, Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Justice Amadi explained that his hands are “fettered” by two interim injunctions served on his office on January 16 following suits filed separately by the governor and his deputy. Those orders, issued by a High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, expressly restrain him from receiving, forwarding, considering or acting on any request, resolution or communication relating to impeachment proceedings.
The injunctions were obtained to forestall the impeachment process initiated by the state legislature and specifically name the Chief Judge in their operative provisions. Justice Amadi noted in his letter that the Speaker has already lodged an appeal against the injunctions at the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt, and that the doctrine of lis pendens requires all parties and courts to await the outcome of that appeal before moving forward.
“By virtue of the subsisting interim orders of injunction and the appeal, my hand is fettered,” the Chief Judge wrote, adding that he is “legally disabled at this point” from exercising his constitutional powers under Section 188(5) of the Nigerian Constitution.
He urged the Rivers State House of Assembly to “be magnanimous enough to appreciate the legal position of the matter,” stressing that the rule of law must prevail despite the political pressure surrounding the issue.
The current stalemate follows an impeachment effort launched by the Rivers State House of Assembly on January 8, 2026, when lawmakers cited allegations of budgetary impropriety, failure to present the 2026 appropriation bill, unauthorized expenditure of public funds and withholding statutory allocations to the legislature as grounds for gross misconduct against Governor Fubara and Deputy Governor Odu.
On January 16, the Assembly passed a motion requesting that the Chief Judge constitute a seven-member judicial panel to investigate the allegations. However, the High Court injunction has since prevented any action on that motion.
The refusal by Justice Amadi to set up the panel adds another layer to the tense legal and political conflict in Rivers State, where the impeachment process is now in limbo pending the appeal. Observers warn that the prolonged stand-off underscores the complex intersection of judicial orders and legislative prerogatives, highlighting how constitutional checks and balances can stall political proceedings when court orders intervene.
As both sides now prepare for further legal confrontation at the appellate level, the fate of the impeachment process—and the political future of Governors Fubara and Odu—remains uncertain.
