It is the end of the road for the Rivers State Governor, Siminalaye Fubara as the Supreme Court, on Friday, upholds Martin Amaewhule as the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly. This is even as the apex court ordered the House resume sitting immediately.
In delivering the judgement, the apex court reinstated the judgement that barred the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and the Accountant General of the Federation from releasing statutory monthly allocations to Rivers State.
The apex court also ordered the Hon. Martins Amaewhule-led faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly and other elected members of the House to forthwith resume sitting, unhindered.
Supreme Court faulted the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal for vacating the initial order that stopped the release of funds to Rivers State from the consolidated revenue. This is following the failure of Governor Siminalaye Fubara’s refusal to re-present the 2024 Appropriation Bill of the State before the Hon. Martins Amaewhule-led faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
The apex court held that contrary to the verdict of the appellate court, the Federal High Court in Abuja had the requisite jurisdiction to entertain the suit the Amaewhule-led 27 lawmakers filed to challenge the continued withdrawal and expenditure of funds belonging to the State without the approval of the State Assembly.
A five-member panel of the apex court, in its lead judgement that was delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, held that the appellate court mis-apprehended the core issue in dispute when it pegged it on the consolidated revenue of Rivers State alone.
This wrong view, the apex court said, influenced it to hold that the subject matter was not within the power of the Federal High Court,” the Supreme Court noted.
The apex court, therefore, emphasized that what was at the center of the case was the refusal of Governor Fubara to obey a subsisting Court order mandating him to present the Appropriation Bill to the valid Assembly.
The Supreme Court, therefore, agreed with the High Court that the 27 lawmakers that allegedly defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, are still valid members of the Rivers Assembly, pending the final determination of their status.
The Supreme Court, also dismissed Governor Fubara’s claim that given the defection of the lawmakers, he had to invoke the doctrine of necessity by presenting the Appropriation Bill to the only five remaining members of the Assembly.
According to the court, the doctrine of necessity could not be invoked to justify an illegal action.
Accusing Governor Fubara of destroying the government because of his fear of being impeached, the Supreme Court, awarded N5 million cost against him.
source: cdanews