The political crisis rocking the Rivers State House of Assembly persists, House of Representatives, Wednesday, passed a resolution urging the National Assembly to take over the legislative functions of that House of Assembly immediately.

The Lower Chamber also asked the Inspector General of Police to re-deploy the State Police Commissioner, Joseph Mbu, accusing him of compromise.  Both the House and the Senate must concur before the House can take over any State Assembly.

However, two lawmakers from the embattled state, Hons. Ken Chikere and Kingsley Chinda opposed the decision saying the resolution was hasty and unpopular.

RiversState has been engulfed in hydra-headed political crises for the past two months, engineered from within and outside the state. It worsened on Tuesday as five of the 32 member assembly moved to impeach the Speaker, Hon Otelemaba Amachree. The attempt resulted to a free-for –all fight in the chamber.

The situation worsened the following day as pro and anti Governor Chibuike Amaechi clashed in front of the Assembly complex and other areas in Port Harcourt.  Meanwhile, police and soldiers have taken over strategic areas of the capital city.

Reports said hundreds of supporters of the five lawmakers who attempted to remove the House Speaker, Otelemaba Dan-Amachree openly brandished dangerous weapons chanting anti-Amaechi slogans and shooting into the air. The pro-Amaechi supporters had mobilized and stormed the Assembly complex to stop the lawmakers opposed to the governor from sitting.

While the confrontation raged in front of the complex, the police intervened, ordering everybody including staff of the Assembly to vacate the premises before locking the gate.  A detachment of soldiers also arrived to disperse people from the area.

Civil servants deserted the State Secretariat as they could not get access to their offices.

A statement from the Police Command appealed to the public for co-operation as they were out to protect life and property of all citizens.

Meanwhile, the Presidency has said that President Goodluck Jonathan has no hands in what was happening in the Rivers State House of Assembly.  The Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar has assured Nigerians that he would investigate the role of his men in the crisis while the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has urged restraint and for court adjudication.

Also the Senate President, David Mark has described the crisis rocking the Rivers State House of Assembly as unacceptable to lawmakers in the country saying that they were prepared to sacrifice their blood, if necessary, to uphold the constitution.

His words: “Clearly, what is happening in RiversState is an embarrassment to legislators across the length and breadth of this country and it is in the interest of Assemblies not to do anything that will portray legislators as irresponsible because that is not what we are.  Clearly also, what is happening is totally unacceptable and it must be condemned in the strongest possible terms and in its entirety, irrespective of who is behind it”.

For the first time in the history of the Seventh Senate, the lawmakers had to rely on Order 73(1-4) of the Senate Standing Orders, where each members cast his/her vote on whether the chamber should urge the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar to wade into the crisis or not.

With a vote of 50 against 47, it was resolved that the senate should urge the IGP “to take immediate steps to address the issue of the broken relationship between the Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi and the Commissioner of Police, Joseph Mbu.  But behind closed doors it was gathered that a section of the chamber had actually argued that the senate should urge the IGP to remove CP Mbu.

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