The Supreme Court on Friday stopped the release of federal monthly allocations from the consolidated funds to the Rivers State Government.
The apex court also ordered the Martins Amaewhule-led faction of the Rivers state house of assembly and other elected members of the house to resume sitting.
The Amaewhule-led faction is loyal to Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
The 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 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.
It 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.
In its lead judgement that was delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, a five-member panel of the apex court held that the appellate court misapprehended the core issue in dispute when it pegged it on the consolidated revenue of Rivers State alone.
While noting that “this wrong view influenced it to hold that the subject matter was not within the power of the Federal High Court,” the Supreme Court stressed 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.
It 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 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.