BY EGUFE YAFUGBORHI
PORT HARCOURT—THE International Society for Social Justice and Human Rights, ISSJHR, has expressed disappointment at members of Rivers State House of Assembly, RVHA, for signing Police undertaking to be of good conduct as precondition for reconvening the House which had been shut since July.

Chancellor of ISSJHR, Omenazu Jackson, expressed the group’s displeasure yesterday, shortly after Deputy Speaker of RVHA, Leyii Kwaneen, announced in Port Harcourt that 22 members of the House had reported at Rivers Police Command’s Criminal Investigation Department, CID, to sign the undertaking.

Jackson asked: “What desperation pushes an elected arm of government to shamelessly bow to police ridicule and intimidation to the extent that they have to sign undertaking to act honourably in their own hallowed chambers? This 7th Assembly has really been a disappointment to Rivers people.

“There was a barbaric fight in the House. That brought enough disappointment and shame to Rivers. Now they have to sign an undertaking before the Police. They were elected and swore to be of good conduct in the interest of Rivers people.

“If they no longer trust themselves as men of good conduct, then it is not a question of signing police undertaking. The best they should do is resign their seats and let Rivers people re-elect genuinely honourable members.”
He accused the police of overstepping their bounds, warning that authorities of the state Police Command must stop “grandstanding and undue interference in the governance of Rivers State.

*Empty chamber of the Rivers State House of Assembly

“A situation where the police hold the office of a state governor in contempt, intimidate the legislature, turn blind eye on five rebel lawmakers trying to lord it over 27 and undermine court orders, is a dangerous precedence Rivers people must not allow to linger for too long.

“They have succeeded in cowing the lawmakers. This is bad precedence. Tomorrow, we should not be surprised to hear the police saying if the one arm of government could concede to signing good conduct undertaking, the other arms, the governor and commissioners as well as judges in the Judiciary should, if the police so deem fit, raise no objection to signing undertakings too,” Jackson concluded.