Rivers Assembly Begins Screening of Commissioner Nominees
The Rivers State House of Assembly has commenced the screening of commissioner nominees submitted by Siminalayi Fubara, Governor of Rivers State, as part of efforts to reconstitute the state’s Executive Council.
The screening exercise began during plenary on Monday at the Assembly complex in Port Harcourt, with lawmakers assessing the credentials and suitability of the nominees for appointment into the state cabinet.
Presiding over the session, the Speaker of the Assembly, Martin Amaewhule, welcomed the nominees and reiterated the lawmakers’ responsibility to ensure that only qualified individuals are confirmed to manage the affairs of various ministries in the state. Nine nominees appeared before the House for the screening.
They include Prof. Datonye Alasia, Tonye Bellgam, Prof. Temple Nwofor, Dr. Peters Nwagor, Charity Deemua, Tamuno Williams, Lekue Kenneth, Otonye TKD Amachree, and Sir Amairigha Edward Hart. During the exercise, the nominees presented their credentials and responded to questions from lawmakers on their professional experience, leadership capacity, and plans for contributing to governance if confirmed.
The screening followed the earlier submission of the nominees’ list to the Assembly by Governor Fubara, requesting legislative confirmation in accordance with constitutional provisions guiding appointments into the state executive council.
The move to form a new cabinet comes after the governor dissolved the previous executive council earlier this year as part of efforts to restructure his administration and strengthen governance in the oil-rich state.
The Assembly is expected to conclude the screening process and deliberate on the nominees before voting on their confirmation. Once approved, the commissioners will oversee key ministries and support the implementation of the government’s policies and development programmes in Rivers State.
