The Rivers State House of Assembly has screened and confirmed five out of the nine commissioner nominees forwarded by the state governor, Siminalayi Fubara.
The decision was announced during a plenary session of the Assembly, which was broadcast live. Lawmakers rejected four of the nominees, citing concerns over their performance during the screening exercise and issues surrounding their credentials.
Speaking during the session, the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule, said the Assembly carefully reviewed all nine nominees before reaching its decision.
According to him, five of the nominees were found suitable to serve in the state executive council, while the remaining four failed to convince the lawmakers that they were prepared for the responsibilities of the office.
He noted that the Assembly resolved that only the confirmed nominees should be inaugurated and said he would formally communicate the decision to the governor.
“Distinguished colleagues, we have nine nominees forwarded to this Assembly by the governor. At the end of the screening exercise, the House has confirmed five of them,” Amaewhule said.
He added that the other four nominees were not cleared because of what the lawmakers described as poor performance during the screening and controversies surrounding their documents.
The nominees whose appointments were rejected are Datonye Alasia, Tamuno Williams, Otonye Amachree and Charity Deemua.
Meanwhile, the five nominees confirmed by the Assembly are Tonye Belgam, Temple Nwafor, Peters Nwagor, Lekue Kenneth and Amarigha Edward-Hart. The Speaker said the resolution of the Assembly would be forwarded to Governor Fubara for necessary action.
