Edwin Clark, South-South national leader and elder statesman, on Monday, warned of dire consequences should Rivers Gov. Siminalaye Fubara be impeached as being planned by some vested interests.

Mr Clark gave the warning in a statement he issued in reaction to the setting ablaze of the Rivers House of Assembly on Sunday.

He stated that the fire incident arose from the plan to destabilise Rivers and impeach Mr Fubara.

The elder statesman alleged that Mr Fubara was tear-gassed and was even threatened with being shot at when he visited the assembly complex after the incident to assess the level of damage.

“I have been greatly disturbed by the reported developments in Rivers in the last 24 hours.

“I understand that the intention is to remove the governor, force his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, to resign, and install the Speaker of the House of Assembly as the governor.

“Let me warn strongly that we will not allow that to happen!

“The consequences would be dire for the stability of the region and for the national economy,” Mr Clark charged.

He noted that the Rivers people had suffered enough political crises.

“The state should not be allowed to degenerate again into its dark past, and the Niger Delta Region by extension,’’ he stated.

The elder statesman called on President Bola Tinubu to direct security agencies in Rivers to avert any untold crisis in the state.

He urged the president to act speedily to avert the unfolding crisis in Rivers in the interest of his administration and that of the nation’s democracy.

Mr Clark warned also that vested interests should not be allowed to do whatever they liked, noting that Nigeria is a democracy and the tenets of constitutional democracy must be upheld by all.

(NAN)