Rivers State House of Assembly, says it has given the Managing Director of Heirs Energies and his management team, a second chance to appear before the house, on Monday, July 20, 2026.
The house threatened to issue a warrant to compel Heirs management team to honour the summon, following what lawmakers described as the firm’s persistent refusal to honour repeated invitations over petitions before the house.
The lawmakers, at monday’s fourth legislative sitting of the fourth session, said the decision became necessary after the House Committee on Public Complaints and Petitions reported that Heirs Energies had repeatedly ignored its summons.
It warned that failure to appear on the new date would leave the assembly with no option but to invoke its constitutional powers under Section 129 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to compel the company’s attendance.
The summon is following a petition by Omuohia Community in Igwuruta, over the environmental damage arising from the oil spill occasioned by Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited’s equipment failure.
Adopting the recommendations of the committee, the lawmakers affirmed the assessed compensation sum of Two Hundred and Five million, Eight Hundred and Thirteen Thousand, Two Hundred and Eighty-five Naira, Sixty-five Kobo (N205,813,285. 65) to be paid to the affected persons and community as fair and reasonable, given the degree of the environmental damage.
The house further urged the company to ensure a comprehensive clean- up, and remediation of the affected area in the interest of public health.
Speaker of the House, Mr Martins Amaewhule, explained that “resolving on reports of its Committee on Public Complaints and Petitions after a robust debate, the Rivers State House of Assembly on Monday, at its 4th Legislative Sitting of the Fourth Session, summoned the Managing Director of Heirs Energies and his management team to appear before the house on Monday, 20th July, 2026, failure of which the house will be forced to issue a warrant to compel their attendance in accordance with Section 129 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended.
“The House made the resolution when the Public Complaints and Petitions Committee reported, that the company despite receiving repeated invitations from the committee, neglected and refused to appear before the committee, which the house considered egregious, and an affront.”
On the non-appearance of Heirs Energies management, the speaker said “the house would not condone such impudence, Section 129 empowers the house to procure evidence, written or oral, direct or circumstantial that may be material or relevant to the subject matter from any person invited for that purpose.”
Amaewhule further urged the company to without fail appear before the house on Monday, at 10:00am.
