A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has struck out a suit brought before it by late Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, former Deputy Governor of Bayelsa state against the state’s House of Assembly over alleged plan to impeach him.
The trial judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, in a ruling on Wednesday, struck out the suit after B.K. Angaye, who appeared for Bayelsa State House of Assembly, its Speaker and others, made the application to the effect.
When the case was called, no counsel appeared for the late Ewhrudjakpo, who died on December 11, last year
Angaye announced appearance for the House of Assembly, the Speaker, the Attorney-General of Bayelsa state, the clerk of the Assembly, who were listed as 1st, 2nd, 5th and 7th defendants in the suit.
The Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), was represented at the Wednesday’s proceedings by Ifeaoma Okonkwo.
Angaye informed the court that the suit, which had been pending for a considerable period, had been overtaken by event and applied that the matter be struck out.
Okonkwo did not oppose the application and Justice Nwite consequently struck out the case, saying that, “This matter is slated today for hearing but the defence counsel informed the court that this matter has been overtaken by event. Consequently, this matter is hereby struck out,” the judge ruled.
Ewhrudjakpo, who was the immediate-past deputy governor of Bayelsa state, had filed the suit to challenge alleged ploy by the state House of Assembly to impeach him following his refusal to defect alongside with the state Governor, Douye Diri from Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In the originating summons marked FHC/ABJ/CS/221/2025, Ewhrudjakpo alleged that members of the Bayelsa Assembly were under pressure to remove him from office for refusing to resign from PDP — the platform on which he and Diri were elected.
Diri had defected from the PDP to the APC on November 3, 2025, but Ewhrudjakpo had remained in the party.
The late deputy governor, through his lawyer, Reuben Egwuaba approached the court with a suit seeking an order restraining the state House of Assembly from removing or impeaching him in violation of Sections 188(5)-(9), (11) and 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), on the grounds of his refusal to defect from the PDP to APC or any other political party before the end of his tenure.
He also sought an order restraining the Assembly from initiating or conducting impeachment proceedings or meetings against him for the same reason and from recognising or dealing with any member of the APC as deputy governor of the state.
Additionally, Ewhrudjakpo sought an order restraining the Inspector-General (IGP), DG of DSS, and the Bayelsa AG from withdrawing his security protection as deputy governor pending the determination of the motion on notice.
After Egwuaba moved the ex-parte motion on October 27, 2025, Justice Nwite directed the defendants to appear before the court and show cause why the interim orders sought by the plaintiff should not be granted.
Listed as defendants were the state’s House of Assembly, its speaker, the IGP, the DG of the DSS, the Bayelsa AG, the state’s chief judge, and the clerk of the House of Assembly as 1st to 7th defendants respectively.
The late Ewhrudjakpo was said to have collapsed in his office in Yenagoa and was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, where he was pronounced dead on December 11, 2025, and was buried on January 30, 2026.
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