I was offered N5bn to get Fubara impeached – Chief of staff
By Jeffrey Agbo
Edison Ehie, the Chief of Staff to the suspended Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has claimed that he was offered a bribe of N5 billion to support the impeachment of his boss.
During an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Ehie asserted that he possesses concrete proof of the attempted bribery stored on his mobile device.
“I can also open my phone to show you, in the beginning of October 2023, when they approached me with a bribe of N5 billion. It is here in my phone,” he said.
“It was for impeachment. It’s here. I have it and I have printed it and distributed it, in case, in their evil imagination, they decide to attack me. I already have a son and a brother.”
According to him, the offer was made while he was serving as the majority leader in the Rivers State House of Assembly. To safeguard himself, Ehie said he had printed and distributed copies of the evidence.
He also dismissed accusations that he was behind the October 30, 2023, fire at the Rivers State Assembly complex, allegedly carried out on Fubara’s instructions.
Former Rivers State Head of Service, George Nwaeke, had made the allegation in a press conference last Friday, claiming he personally witnessed a bag of cash being handed to Ehie at the Government House for the operation. However, Nwaeke admitted he was unaware of the exact amount inside.
Refuting the claim as baseless and politically driven, Ehie maintained: “It is very important to clarify that I had no hand and was not part of the burning down of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
“Like everyone else, I woke up in the early hours of 30th of October 2023 to hear of the burning down of the Rivers State House of Assembly.”
Furthermore, Ehie revealed he had directed his legal team to initiate legal action against Nwaeke for criminal defamation.
He also claimed that Nwaeke had requested financial assistance from him on the same day he resigned as the state’s Head of Service.
Rivers State has been entangled in political strife following a fallout between Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
On March 18, President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State, leading to the suspension of both the governor and his deputy. A week later, on March 26, the state’s sole administrator, Ibok-Ete Ibas, dismissed all political officeholders in the region.
