By Abiola Olawale
The Rivers State Government has approached the Appeal Court to seek an order overturning the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Abuja Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday barred the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from further releasing allocations from the federation account to the state.
In a swift action, the Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Joseph Johnson, revealed that the government has approached the appellate court seeking to overturn the judgment.
Johnson, who spoke with the press, expressed optimism that the Appeal Court would upturn the judgment.
According to him, the government was unperturbed as they had already instituted an appeal against the Federal High Court judgment.
He stated: “We saw this judgment coming the way it did when the trial judge refused 23 council chairmen as joinders, refused the state to change their lawyer and refused our objection challenging jurisdiction of the federal high court.
“The judgment has already been appealed and l believe that the Court of Appeal will upturn the judgment. We are not panicked and there is no cause for alarm.”
The New Diplomat reports that Justice Abdulmalik on Wednesday ruled that the presentation of the 2024 budget by Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State before a four-member Rivers House of Assembly was an affront on the Constitution of the federal Republic of Nigeria, and indeed an aberration.
The presiding judge also held that Fubara’s receipt and disbursement of monthly allocations since January was nothing short of a Constitutional aberration that must not be allowed to continue.
Justice Abdulmalik ruled that Fubara’s action in implementing an unlawful budget stood as a gross violation of the 1999 Constitution he swore to protect.
She proceeded to restrain the CBN, Accountant-General of the Federation, Zenith Bank and Access Bank from further allowing Fubara access to money from the Consolidated Revenue and Federation Account, respectively.
She delivered the judgment on a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/984/2024 and filed by the Rivers House of Assembly and Martins Amaewhule against the CBN, Zenith Bank PLC, Access Bank PLC, Accountant-General of the Federation, Governor Fubara, Accountant-General of Rivers State, Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, S. C. Amadi (Chief Judge of Rivers), Hon. Justice Adolphus Enebeli (retired), (Chairman, Rivers SIEC) and the Government of Rivers State, as 1st to 10th defendants respectively.
She also declared that the Martins Amaewhule-led House of Assembly remains the legitimate House of Assembly in view of the Federal High Court judgment, which nullified and set aside the House of Assembly of Victor Oko Jumbo led 4-member House of Assembly and upholding of same by the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
It would be recalled that on December 13, 2023, in the heat of the ongoing protracted political crisis rocking the oil-rich state and the demolition of the Assembly Complex, Fubara presented the 2024 budget proposal of N800bn to five members of the State Assembly led by Edison Ehie.
The presentation was done at the Government House in Port Harcourt, following the demolition of the Assembly Complex by the state government and after a court restrained the Assembly members from using the Assembly Complex.
Ehie and the other lawmakers believed to be loyal to Fubara, passed the budget estimates, and the governor signed the bill into law, saying it was aimed at promoting economic development through inclusive growth and addressing socio-economic inequality in the state.
Ehie would later resign from the House and Amaewhule was restored as the Assembly’s Speaker after both sides met with President Bola Tinubu in Abuja.
Amaewhule and 25 other lawmakers believed to be loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike subsequently demanded that Fubara should represent the 2024 budget estimates to the Assembly afresh, and the matter was taken to court.
However, Fubara is yet to re-present the budget.
