By Our Correspondent
National News – The Rivers State House of Assembly has defended its decision to reject four out of nine commissioner nominees submitted by Governor Siminalayi Fubara, citing poor performance during screening and controversies surrounding some of the candidates’ credentials.
During a plenary session on Monday, lawmakers screened the nine nominees forwarded by the governor for appointment into the Rivers State Executive Council.
After more than two hours of questioning and deliberation, the House confirmed five nominees while rejecting four others.
Speaker Martin Amaewhule, who presided over the session, said the Assembly reached its decision after evaluating the nominees’ qualifications, tax compliance records, petitions submitted against them, and their responses during the screening exercise.
According to the Speaker, the Assembly had a responsibility to ensure only competent individuals were appointed to serve in the state’s executive council.
“We screened nine nominees forwarded by the governor.
After the exercise, five were confirmed while four were dropped due to poor performance and controversies surrounding their documentation,” Amaewhule said.
The nominees rejected by the House are Prof. Datonye Alasia, Tamuno Williams, Otonye Amachree, and Charity Deemua.
Meanwhile, the lawmakers confirmed Tonye Belgam, Prof. Temple Nwafor, Dr. Peters Nwagor, Lekue Kenneth, and Amarigha Edward-Hart as commissioners-designate.
One of the rejected nominees, Charity Deemua, came under scrutiny over inconsistencies in her tax clearance documents.
During the screening, she admitted that her tax records had not been updated since 2018, explaining that she had been involved in politics without holding a formal job.
Her response prompted further questions from the Speaker, who challenged the explanation and asked whether she had received any income during the period.
In another development, Tamuno Williams also failed to impress lawmakers after he could not recite the second stanza of the Nigerian national anthem when asked during the screening process.
Lawmakers also revealed that multiple petitions had been filed against nominee Otonye Amachree, including additional complaints received electronically during the screening.
Following the deliberations, the Assembly directed the Clerk to forward the resolution confirming the five successful nominees to the governor for necessary action.
The House also urged Governor Fubara to swear in the approved commissioners without delay.
The Rivers State Assembly said the screening process was part of its constitutional responsibility to ensure that only qualified individuals are appointed to serve the people of the state.
