House of Assembly crisis:The fantastic five of Rivers

By Jimitota Onoyume
HOW many maces surfaced in the Rivers State House of Assembly on
Tuesday? Two or three as being alleged in some quarters? Will the
judgement of a tiny minority of five overrule over that of 26? These
and many more are some of the questions that have continued to agitate
the minds of keen observers of political developments in the Assembly
after the drama on Tuesday.
As early as 7.30 am that Tuesday, members started streaming into the
Assembly complex for the day's business. Some, who had not seen
themselves for a while, took time to exchange banters. The House,
until that day, had not sat for about two months. So some of the
lawmakers were probably seeing themselves after the House adjourned
sine die.
Youths were all over the Assembly complex. Nobody could say if they
came to observe the proceedings of the House but they clustered in
groups. Such sight is not unusual at theHouse on special days like
when nominees for political appointments are scheduled for screening.
Such nominees, oftentimes, mobilise relatives and supporters to cheer
themwhen being screened.
Security operatives were also all over the complex. They took time to
search vehicles before being allowed into thecomplex while those on
foot were frisked. The atmosphere looked busy.
At the hallowed chambers, some of themembers moved from their seat to
exchange pleasantries, depicting a friendly and convivial atmosphere.
Then, suddenly, the mood changed. Probably only the gladiators could
explain what informed the provocation. All the journalists
presentcould see from the gallery was a member landing the leader of
the House, Hon Chidi Lloyd, a slap on his cheek. Within seconds, the
House became chaotic, computers were destroyed and objects were thrown
allover by the lawmakers.
Policemen raced into the chambers. Their presence created an
opportunity for the pro-Amaechi lawmakers to run out.speaker and
questionable mace
The five anti-Governor Chibuike Amaechi lawmakers now had the whole
hallowed chambers of the Assembly complex to themselves. They are
Michael Okechukwu Chinda, Victor Ihunwo, Michael Amaewhule, Godspower
Kelechi Wogu and Evans Bapakaye Bipialaka . They immediatelycommenced
sitting with a mace. Only the Assembly could say if the mace wasfake
or authentic. But there was a mace. Amaewhule moved a motion calling
for the impeachment of the Speaker of the House, Hon Otelemaba
Amachree; the motion was seconded by Wogu. They went ahead to
pronounce Bipialaka as the Speaker.
Bipialaka stood up, headed for the dais and sat on the seat reserved
for the Speaker of the House. He then proceeded to give his acceptance
speech. He was on this when the pro-Amaechi lawmakers that stormed out
came in; this time accompanied by the governor.
Fresh fracas ensued. One pro-Amaechi lawmaker dashed for the mace,
broke it. A part of it was used to hit Chinda. A policeman also dealt
Chinda some blows. He managed to escape through one of the exit
doors.
About four lawmakers were allegedly injured in the melee that engulfed theHouse.
Meantime, the pro-Amaechi lawmakerswith Amachree as Speaker later reconvened.
The deputy governor, Engr Tele Ikiru, was in the House to present an
executive amendment to the 2013 budget. A mace was in the chambers,
this time; it was not the one broken by the House member who was not
with the lawmakers because he was reportedly admitted in a hospital
for injuries suffered during the fracas.
Amachree was not robed in the Speaker's official attire. He was
ushered into the hallowed chambers by the sergeant-at-arms who was
carrying the mace. When he sat, he called on the Clerk to read out the
order of the day. He was still talking when Bipialaka, who had
earlier been made Speaker by five members, pushed his way into the
gallery. He watched the proceedings briefly from there before he was
forced out by some security operatives. He was accused of coming into
the gallery with teargas; this could not be confirmed.
Amachree told the majority lawmakers that Amaechi wanted the House to
amend sub heads in the 2013 budget relating to some capital projects.
He invited the deputy governor to address the House.
Ikiru thanked the lawmakers for their attention, adding that he was
representing his principal, Amaechi. Hesaid he had come to present an
executive amendment to the 2013 budget on capital expenditure,
stressing that it would enable government deliver more on its
promises to the state.
The Speaker took over and explained that the amendment was not
intendedto add or remove from the N490,220,000 budget earlier passed
by the Assembly. "The amendment is onlyon capital expenditure. We are
not adding or removing from the budget. The governor is only asking
for movement from one sub head to the other and it is only on capital
expenditure", he said.
The House then asked the deputy governor to leave while it dissolved
into a committee of the whole House where the amendment was granted.
Amachree announced that the amendment had been affected The House adjourned.
Ikiru, who retired to one of the offices in the complex, later joined
the Speaker and other principal officers on their way out of the
chambers.
The majority
As they made their way out, Bipialaka broke out from a crowd of
youths he was addressing and made attempt to attack Amachree. Security
details attached to the Speaker had to shield him and the deputy
governor.
Ikiru and Amachree drove out of the complex.
At a media briefing later, the Speaker dismissed the claim that he
was impeached by the five lawmakers, stressing that the leadership of
the House had not changed.
"We were shocked to hear of the impeachment. The leadership of the
House has not changed. Can five members sit to impeach the leadership
of the House? We did not expect there would be chaos in the House. We
were all exchanging pleasantries before I was attacked. "
When asked why only 23 lawmakers sat to pass the amendment sought by
the executive when the claim was thatthey had 27 lawmakers on the side
of the governor, Amachree said four members sent excuses to be absent.
He however quickly noted that 23 was still a majority. "'It is not
compulsory that every member must be present inour sitting. I am aware
they took excuses", he said.
On the mace used by the five lawmakers to sit, the Speaker said it
was fake, adding that the tradition to convene the House was for the
Speaker to be escorted by the sergeant-at-arms with the mace. "The
sergeant-at-arms only escorted me with the mace."
When asked to comment on the action of the police and other security
operatives during the melee, he said he was dissatisfied with their
conduct. Amachree said the House had applied for police protection to
cover the sitting but he was surprised that they only came to watch.I
asked the Clerk to write to the Commissioner of Police and the army
for protection. The police came watching. We will write to the
NationalAssembly. We also did not see the army", the Speaker said.
The following day, another crisis brokeout, this time between
supporters of the two factions. The pro- Amaechi lawmakers had slated
a sitting for 10 am while the five anti-Amaechi lawmakers fixed 8am
for theirs.
By 6:30 am, there were thousands of youths on Moscow Road which leads
to the Assembly complex. It dawned on all that there would be another
showdown among the lawmakers if they went ahead with the sittings. An
aide to the Speaker, Mr Jim Opiki, said the pro-Amaechi lawmakers had
calledoff their sitting to avert another round of crisis.
Meantime, a combined security team quickly moved into the Assembly,
ordering everybody out including the staff. They fired teargas to
chase away loyalists of the two parties on MoscowRoad.
Police later mounted barricades on thetwo sides of the road. Motorists
and pedestrians were not allowed into the road. They also mounted an
armoured personnel carrier at the end of road connecting William
Jumbo road. No vehicle was allowed to go beyond the Port Harcourt City
Council secretariat.
Then youths chased from the Assembly complex and Moscow Road later
moved to the Government House end. Those in support of the 27
lawmakers gathered in front of Government House while those in support
of the anti-Amaechi lawmakers assembled close to the post office which
is barely 100 meters from the Government House.Bipialaka addressed
his supporters at the Post office end earlier, saying he had gone to
the House to resume as Speaker but police men from the opposing group
made it impossible forthe House to sit.
Meantime, Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mr Joseph Mbu Joseph,
said the ban on public protest was in force in the state. He said the
police would apply minimal force to stop any street protest.
The two lawmakers who were hospitalised told their stories of how they
found themselves in hospital.
God will judge – Hon Llyod Chinda
"Rivers State House of Assembly elected a new Speaker, Hon. Evans
Bipialaka, after Hon. Daniel Amaechreewas impeached and everything
concerning the enthronement of the new speaker was concluded. We were
about to leave the peace when the governor broke into the chambers
with thugs. Governor Rotimi Amaechi led a group of thugs including the
Government House police and some other security men. They came in and
started beating everybody", Chinda the injured anti-Amaechi lawmaker
said.
He continued: "In my own case, I have to be very specific. I was about
leaving,I never knew that Chidi Lloyd , we are very close in the
House, I was misled by my closeness with him. I never had any idea
that he could be so brutal to use such a weapon on my head with one
policeman who also held my hand,jacket to assist him to accomplish
that task.
My colleagues rushed me to Saint Patrick Hospital in the pool of my
own blood and I have been here since yesterday.
"If you look at my records, from the very day we were inauguarated by
the governor of Rivers State, …I have neverinsulted the governor. I
hold the office of the governor of Rivers State in a very high esteem
and I wouldn't have gone close to the governor. I didn't even go close
to the governor becausewe respect him. But Chidi Lloyd and the
policemen came and did what theydid. God will judge. Why will I insult
the governor? If anybody said I did such a thing, he is not being fair
to me.
"We formed a quorum, the number required to impeach a Speaker".
Our state under siege — Assembly leader chidi lloyd
"Yesterday, the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Otelema Dan Amachree,
directed that the House be reconvened to consider an amendment to the
2013 appropriation law which the governor had communicated to him via
a letter", Lloyd, the pro-Amaechi member of the House said. He went
on: "As if Mr. Speaker saw what was going to happen today, he wrote a
letter through the Clerk of the House to the Commissioner of Police to
provide security for the sitting and he also wrote to the commander of
2 Amphibious Brigade who also doubles as the head of the internal JTF.
So when we got to work this morning, wesaw policemen numbering over 50
andwe thought that this was in response to Mr. Speaker's request.
"Shortly thereafter, I noticed that the five anti-Amaechi members were
discussing and calling their boys to come in. Initially, the policemen
were searching everybody who would comeinto the premises. I had to
even come down at the gate and trekked into the premises. After a
while, we learnt there were phone calls and the commissioner of
police personally called the unit, the man in charge to allow
everybody in.We went in as members who had not seen ourselves for
sometime because of the crisis in the state. I was on my seat, without
provocation, Hon. Evans Bipi came to me in the full glare of everybody
on camera and started raining punches on me.
As his Leader, I did not react because I felt that it was something we
could settle; whatever it was, maybe I didn't greet him. When that
continued, the Speaker intervened. Then Bipi reachedout for the tripod
that stands the camera, used it freely on me, himself and Michael
Okechukwu Chinda. They flogged me to their satisfaction, I didn't just
utter a word until Hon. Ihunwo graciously asked me to run for my dear
life because they had brought people with guns and, of course, when I
looked at the gallery they were shouting, ' who is the Chidi Lloyd,
who is the Chidi Lloyd'.
"At that point, I'm sure somebody may have reached out to the governor
of the state who came in with his own security because these other
policemen were there standing helplessly. The governor came and
rescued members. After a while, we heard that they were meeting, they
had procured a fake mace; so we went back and I took the mace where
they were sitting; I sustained injury as a result of the violence by
Michael Chinda and Evans Bipi.
So while I was in hospital, the Speaker and other members of the House
sat and heard the amendment that the governor sent, was presented on
his behalf by the deputy governor. I want to use this opportunity,
while in hospital here, I have received phone calls of threat to my
family and I.
"Incidentally, I'm so helpless, I don't know who to run to. I can't go
to the commissioner of police because he is on the other side. I'm
appealing to well-meaning Nigerians to pray for meand my family. That
is the last hope wehave resorted to and that we also urgethe National
Assembly, the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Reps
not to turn the other way on the events Rivers State. This could lead
to something that we cannot imagine. It happened in Anambra State,
people were laughing, today it is Rivers State; nobody knows the next
state it would be. If we are practising democracy, let us play by the
rules. The state is under siege. You can't even vouch for the safety
of the governor".
At the time of this piece, none of the two factions could access the
state House of Assembly.