THE Rivers State Head of Service (HoS), George Nwaeke, has resigned.
Nwaeke’s resignation was announced in a statement Tuesday morning by the Chief of Staff to the state’s Sole Administrator, Ibok-Ete Ibas, a retired general.
The sole administrator appreciated Nwaeke, who served under suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, for his service.
Meanwhile, Ibas has appointed Ibibi Worika, a professor, as the new secretary to the state government.
His appointment takes immediate effect.
“Professor Worika’s appointment reflects the administrator’s commitment to harnessing the great human capital of the Rivers ’people to work with him to achieve the much-needed peace, stability, and security,” part of the statement read.
The ICIR reported that President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State on Tuesday, March 18.
The declaration followed political turbulence in the state.
In a nationwide broadcast, the president suspended Fubara; his deputy, Ngozi Odu; and all the state House of Assembly members for six months.
However, he retained the state judiciary.
Tinubu blamed the governor and his predecessor – the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) – Nyesom Wike, for allowing the political crisis in the state to escalate.
He particularly criticised Fubara for failing to take action after an oil facility was blown up in the state hours before the declaration.
He nominated Ibas as the sole administrator to take charge of the affairs of the state.
He added that the declaration did not affect the state judiciary, which he said must continue to function in accordance with their constitutional mandate.
The ICIR reported that the political crisis in the state climaxed on Monday, March 17, when the House of Assembly served Fubara and his deputy a notice of gross misconduct, which could lead to their impeachment.
The House members, who have been at loggerheads with the governor, claimed the accusation was in tandem with the Nigerian constitution.
The lawmakers accused Fubara of misusing public funds, obstructing the Assembly, and making unauthorised appointments without proper screening and confirmation.
Others include the withholding of lawmakers’ salaries and allowances and the seizure of the salaries of the Assembly’s clerk, Emeka Amadi.
Recall that the power struggle between the governor and the Amaewhule-led Assembly reached its peak after the Supreme Court’s judgment, which ordered the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Attorney General of the Federation to withhold Rivers State’s statutory allocation.
It also annulled the recent local government election conducted in the state by Fubara.
Fubara and Wike have been at loggerheads over who controls the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) structure in the state.
A reporter with the ICIR
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