The Federal High Court in Abuja has nullified and invalidated the presentation and approval of the Rivers State 2024 budget by a faction of four legislators in the state.
This budget presentation, led by Edison Ehie, took place at the Government House in Port Harcourt due to the demolition of the Assembly Complex by the state government.
Although Ehie and other pro-Fubara lawmakers successfully passed the budget, with the governor subsequently signing it into law, Ehie later resigned.
Following discussions with President Bola Tinubu in Abuja, Speaker Martin Amaewhule was reinstated as the Assembly’s Speaker.
Subsequently, Amaewhule and 25 other lawmakers aligned with ex-Governor Nyesom Wike took the matter to court, demanding a fresh presentation of the 2024 budget estimates by Fubara.
The court recognized Martin Amaewhule as the legitimate Speaker of the Rivers State Assembly and criticized Governor Fubara for unconstitutional interference in the state’s legislative affairs.
The court emphasized that Governor Fubara exceeded his constitutional authority by redeploying the Clerk and Deputy Clerk of the Rivers State Assembly. It clarified that the conditions outlined in Section 11 of the 1999 Constitution, which would warrant the National Assembly taking over legislative affairs in Rivers State, had not transpired.
Consequently, the court issued an injunction, preventing Governor Fubara from obstructing or obstructing the operations of the Assembly under Amaewhule’s leadership.
Additionally, it restrained the defendants from entertaining any request from Governor Fubara to assume the functions of the Rivers State Assembly, including its legislative competence for matters within its constitutional purview.
The court also prohibited Governor Fubara from proceeding with plans to demolish the Rivers State House of Assembly complex and ordered the release of all funds allocated to the Assembly.
