A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has restrained the Sole Administrator of the state, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd), from inaugurating the newly confirmed chairman and members of the Rivers State Civil Service Commission, pending judgment in an ongoing legal case.
Justice Frank Onyiri issued the order on Monday after all parties adopted their final written addresses in a suit filed by former commission members appointed by Governor Siminalayi Fubara, who are challenging their removal.
The court had previously directed all parties to maintain the status quo in an earlier ruling in April 2025.
The matter has been adjourned to September 29, 2025, for final judgment.
The claimants—Reverend Goodlife Iduoku Ben, Amadi Christian Echele, Chimenem Wisdom Jerome, and others—argue they were duly appointed and confirmed by the Rivers State House of Assembly, with official letters and documentation submitted to the Clerk of the House.
They maintain that the sole administrator lacks the legal authority to suspend them or appoint new commission members.
The defendants in the suit include the sole administrator, the Accountant General of Rivers State, Access Bank, Zenith Bank, and others.
