Impeachment: RVHA Intact – Dan Amachree

Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Otelemaba Dan Amachree says the House is still intact with the 27 lawmakers still solidly behind Governor Chibuike Amaechi, as he called on the citizenry to disregard the alleged impeachment claims.

While addressing newsmen yesterday over claims by the five suspended lawmakers led by Hon. Evans Bipi, representing Ogu/Bolo and four other lawmakers, Otelemaba said, “the leadership of the House is still intact and the news you are hearing is pure falsehood. They are all lies.”

He frowned at the numerous media reports making the rounds that the leadership of the House has been toppled, and described it as laughable.

“We are even shocked to hear that…Look at us. They are five members, and they say they have impeached the leadership of the House with about 27 members. We don’t know where such claims is coming from.”

The Rivers State Assembly speaker also said the leadership of the House will meet and decide on the appropriate action to take on the five members who attempted to disrupt proceedings in the House on Tuesday.

“We have rules and regulations that govern or that guide us in our conduct,”’ Rt Hon Amachree observed, adding, “so, I will not say more, because the leadership of the House will meet and decide on that.”

However, Leader of the House, Hon. Chidi Lloyd has narrated the true account to disclaim the alleged impeachment of the House leadership.

Hon. Lloyd, who spoke to newsmen in his hospital bed yesterday, recalled thus, “yesterday (Monday), the Speaker of the House 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, and as if Mr. Speaker saw what was going to happen today (Tuesday), 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 Brigade, Port Harcourt.

Shortly after they were searched and ushered into the chambers by the police, Lloyd recalled that, “I noticed that the five anti-Amaechi members were discussing in clusters and calling on their boys to come in. Initially, the policemen would search everybody who would come into the premises. So, after a while, we learnt that there were phone calls and the Commissioner of Police personally called the unit, the man in charge to allow everybody in.”

He stated that fight broke out when, without provocation, Hon Bipi launched an unprovoked attack on him, though he did not react, but the speaker came to his rescue when Bipi reached out for a camera tripod stand and together with Okechukwu Chinda, hit him (Lloyd) several times.

“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 have brought people with guns, and of course, when I looked at the gallery, they were shouting who is Chidi Lloyd, who is Chidi Lloyd.”

It was in the heat of the helplessness, according to Lloyd, that somebody called the governor, who came in with his security since the policemen attached to the House watched the drama by the sidelines.

Lloyd said he sustained injuries when he tried to stop Chinda and Bipi, who procured a fake mace to the House, and were sitting.

He added, “we went back, and I took the mace where they were sitting, then I sustained injury as a result of the violence by Micheal Chinda and Evans Bipi.”

Rivers State Deputy Governor, Engr Tele Ikuru at the Assembly, shortly after presenting the Executive’s request for an amendment to the 2013 Appropriation law, yesterday