SUPREME Court has dismissed the appeal filed by Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, challenging the state House of Assembly leadership, headed by Martin Amaewhule.
A five-man panel of the apex court led by Uwani Abba-Aji while dismissing the appeal awarded a cost of two million naira against the Fubara, payable to the Rivers State House of Assembly as the first respondent and Martin Amaewhule as the second respondent.
The suit’s dismissal followed its withdrawal by Fubara’s counsel, Yusuf Ali.
The Rivers State Assembly has been engulfed in a prolonged crisis since 2023, heightened by the defection of over 25 lawmakers loyal to former Governor Nyesom Wike from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
This development led to contention over the House leadership, with the faction led by Amaewhule being challenged by a rival group loyal to Fubara and headed by Victor Oko-Jumbo.
Consequently, Fubara has been conducting the business of the state in conjunction with the Oko-Jumbo faction while disregarding the Amaewhule group.
However, this arrangement was flawed in October when the Court of Appeal in Abuja upheld the judgment of the Federal High Court that nullified the N800 billion 2024 budget passed by the pro-Fubara lawmakers.
In a unanimous judgment on Thursday, October 10, the court dismissed the appeal filed by the Rivers State governor, Fubara, for lacking in merit.
The court reprimanded the governor for acting in contravention of the Constitution.
In July 2024, the Court of Appeal affirmed Amaewhule and 24 other lawmakers as members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
The court voided the state High Court order restraining the 25 lawmakers, known as the G-25, from parading themselves as Assembly members.
A member of the House, Oko-Jumbo, had approached the court to seek an interim injunction against Amaewhule and 24 others from further conducting legislative duties, having left the party on which platform they were elected for another party.
Oko-Jumbo also prayed the court to declare their seats vacant.
The court granted the prayers and ordered that Amaewhule and his colleagues should stop parading themselves as lawmakers and not conduct legislative business.
Dissatisfied with the order, the 25 lawmakers challenged the jurisdiction of the High Court at the Appeal Court.
Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, have been at loggerheads over who controls the PDP structure in the state, with President Bola Tinubu’s efforts to resolve the stalemate yielding no result.
A reporter with the ICIR
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