The supremacy battle between Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, has assumed a new dimension following the emergence of another factional Speaker in the person of Victor Oko Jumbo.
The latter representing Bonny Constituency and loyal to the incumbent governor upstaged Wike’s crony, Hon. Martin Amaewhule, on Wednesday.
Jumbo while speaking after his emergence declared as illegal all the activities embarked upon by the erstwhile leadership of Amaewhule.
The new Speaker also called on Fubara to stop dealing with those he called former lawmakers, who had lost their seats following their defection.
According to him, “All laws, plenary sessions, and actions taken by the illegal house are hereby declared void and a nullity in the eyes of the law by virtue of the judgement of Lord Denning in the celebrated case of MacFoy v UAC (1961) 3 All ER 1169, which held that ‘you cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stand’.
“If an act is void, then it is in law a nullity. It is not only bad, but incurably bad. There is no need for an order of court to set it aside. It is automatically null and void without more ado, though it is sometimes more convenient to have the court declare it to be so. And every proceeding, which is founded on it, is also bad and incurably bad. You cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stay there. It will collapse.”
The new speaker directed the executive arm, the judiciary, and the public to disregard every law purportedly enacted by the illegal Assembly, as they all amounted to nothing but an exercise in futility.
He stated, “Furthermore, this house would want to most respectfully urge and call on His Excellency, the governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminilayi Fubara, to stop dealing with the 25 former lawmakers, in whatever guise.
“Those members are merely floating and do not have any landing ground or anywhere to berth their ship since their defection to the All Progressive Congress on the 11th of December, 2023.
“This house is the legally and constitutionally recognised house by virtue of the defection, and is ready to receive correspondences from and work with His Excellency.”
