A Rivers State High Court has nullified an arrest order issued by the Rivers State House of Assembly against the Vice-Chancellor of Pamo University of Medical Sciences, Prof. Smith Jaja, and ordered the Assembly to pay him N2 million in damages.
Delivering judgment on Friday, 30 October 2026, Hon. Justice Frank Onyiri of the Port Harcourt Division also granted a perpetual injunction restraining the Assembly, the police and other security agencies from interfering with the vice chancellor’s rights.
The ruling followed a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by Prof. Jaja.
Justice Onyiri held that the Assembly’s decision to set up an ad hoc committee to investigate the university under Section 128 of the Constitution, after the 2026 Appropriation Act had already been passed and signed, was a sham.
The judge stressed that the legislature has no power to indict or pronounce on the guilt of any person and its investigative role under Section 128 is limited to gathering evidence for legislative purposes only.
He specifically nullified the Assembly’s declaration seeking the arrest of Prof. Jaja for failing to appear before the committee on 25 September.
Justice Onyiri affirmed that the vice chancellor’s fundamental rights under the 1999 Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights must be protected.
He consequently awarded N2 million in damages against the Rivers State House of Assembly, payable to the applicant.
