Rivers CoS Faults Assembly’s New Law Without Fubara’s Assent

The Chief of Staff, Government House, Rivers State, Ehie Edison, has faulted provisions of the House of Assembly Service Commission (Amendment) Law recently enacted without the assent of the Governor.

The new law repealed the Rivers Assembly Service Commission Law, No. 3 of 2006 and further amended the Rivers Assembly Service Commission Law of 1999.

The House of Assembly enacted the law overriding the Governor after the expiration of the 30 days required by the governor to sign it.

Edision observed that the whole essence of the amendment was to strip the Governor of his powers to appoint the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission.

He said the new law took the power, which originally belonged to the Governor, and vested it with the House of Assembly.

Edison, who was until his appointment as the Chief of Staff, a member of the House, described such provision as null and void.

He said: “The import of the 2024 Amendment Bill passed into Law by the House is that the governor will no longer have the power to appoint the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission and the power of appointment shall be vested in the House of Assembly.”

But he observed that the new provision was contrary to the provisions of the 1999 Constitution as amended on the powers of the state governor insisting that the action of the lawmakers was dead on arrival.

He said: “The first issue to consider is the Constitutional power of the Governor. Section 5(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 provides that the executive powers of the State shall be vested in the Governor of that State.

“Further, Section 176(2) provides that the Governor of a State shall be the Chief Executive of that State. This follows that the governor is the Chief Executive Officer of the State Government and by the powers vested on him, is responsible for making appointments into various executive bodies, subject to the provisions of the 1999 Constitution and other statutes.

“All commissions and other parastatals are executive bodies under the control of the governor. The House of Assembly Service Commission is an executive body and as such the Chairman and members can only be appointed by the governor.

“The House of Assembly has no powers to make any appointment into an executive body as no statutory body is under the control of the legislature.

“The Rivers State House of Assembly should not mistake the presence of the building of the Service Commission in its premises as conferring powers on the House to appoint the Chairman and members of the Commission.”

Edison explained further: “The second issue to consider is the constitutional alteration of 2023. In that alteration, the Third Schedule was amended to include state houses of assembly service commissions, which invariably follows that a state house of assembly commission is one of the state bodies established by section 197 of the 1999 constitution.

“Let’s be reminded that Section 198 of the 1999 Constitution gives the governor the power of appointment into various executive bodies, subject to confirmation by a resolution of the House of Assembly of a State.

“The job of the Rivers State House of Assembly ends with the confirmation of the appointees. The alteration to the Third Schedule, paragraph 1A provides that the composition, tenure, structure, finance, functions, powers, and other proceedings of the commission shall be as prescribed by a law of the House of Assembly of the state.

“Notice that the appointment of the chairman and members of the commission is not listed. Therefore, it can be safely inferred that the power to appoint the chairman and members of the House of Assembly Service Commission lies with the Governor, as is the case with the other bodies listed under Section 197 of the 1999 Constitution.

“There is nothing in the Alteration that, by any stretch of imagination, can be inferred to confer the power of appointing the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission on the Rivers State House of Assembly, notwithstanding the fact that the law creating the commission was enacted by the Rivers State House of Assembly”.

Edison further argued that the state House of Assembly Service Commission and its staff are under the control of the state government as provided by the Constitution.

He posted that by such provision of the Constitution, the Assembly Service Commission is not an appendage of the legislature but under the control of the State Government.

“Even at the national level, the members of the National Assembly Service Commission are appointed by the President in collaboration with the National Assembly”, he said.

Quoting Section 4(5) of the 1999 Constitution, Edison said: “If any Law enacted by the House of Assembly of a State is inconsistent with any law validly made by the National Assembly, the law made by the National Assembly shall prevail, and that other law shall, to the extent of inconsistency, be void”.

Citing some judicial precedents especially in A.G Bendel v AG Federation & 22 Ors (1982), he quoted the Supreme Court as saying: “Neither a State nor an individual can contract out of the provisions of the Constitution. The reason for this is that a contract to do a thing which cannot be done without a violation of the Law is void.”

On whether a statute could revive a repealed statute as in the case of the recent amendment, Edison quoted the decision in the case of Idehen v University of Benin, delivered on 19th December, 2001.

He said the court held that “contrary to the contention of the university, the effect of repealing a statute is to erase the repealed statute from the statute book. When a statute is repealed, it ceases to exist and no longer forms part of the laws of the land. In other words, the effect of the repeal is to render the repealed statute dead and non-existent in law. Like a dead person, it cannot be revived”.

He said: “In conclusion, the Rivers State House of Assembly lacks the powers, legal or otherwise, to remove the power of appointment of the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission from the Governor and vest that power on themselves.

“The provision in the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission (Amendment) Law, 2024 seeking to vest that power on the House is in clear contravention of the 1999 Constitution, and therefore, a nullity in the eyes of the Law.