Hon. Victor Oko-Jumbo, representing Bonny Constituency, on Wednesday emerged as the new Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly. His allegiance is firmly with Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
This development appears to be a strategic move in response to the opposition All Progressives Congress’ directive to the 27 Assembly members to impeach Governor Fubara.
Oko-Jumbo succeeds the former factional Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Eddison Ehie, who resigned from both his position as Speaker and as a member of the House on December 31, 2023. Following his resignation, Ehie was appointed as the Chief of Staff to Governor Fubara.
The details of where the election that led to Oko-Jumbo’s emergence took place remain unconfirmed. However, it is evident that Oko-Jumbo, a staunch supporter of the state governor, has now assumed the role of Speaker.
This development comes shortly after Governor Fubara declared that the 27 members of the House who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress do not constitute a majority. The governor made this statement during a meeting with a delegation of Bayelsa State political and traditional leaders at the Government House, Port Harcourt, on Monday.
He stated, “Let me say it here, those group of men who claim that they are Assembly members, they are not existing. I want it to be on record. I accepted that peace accord to give them a floating (soft-landing). That’s the truth. There is nothing in that peace accord that is a constitutional issue. It is a political solution to a problem. I accepted it because these are people that were visiting me and we were together in my house. These are people that I have helped in many ways when I wasn’t even a Governor. Yes, we might have our disagreements, but I believe that one day, we could also come together. That was the reason I did it. But I think it has gotten to a time when I need to make a statement on this thing, so that they understand that they are not existing. Their existence and whatever they have been doing is because I allowed them to do so. If I don’t recognize them, they are nowhere, that is the truth.”
