The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, barred the Federal Government from releasing further monthly allocations to Rivers State.
The court, in the judgment that was delivered by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, specifically restrained the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, from allowing the state to draw funds from the consolidated revenue account.
The judgment followed a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/984/24, which was brought before the court by the Hon. Martins Amaewhule-led faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
The presiding judge held that the presentation of the 2024 budget by Governor Siminalayi Fubara before a four-member Rivers House of Assembly was an affront to the constitutional provision.
She described the receipt and disbursement of monthly allocations since January this year by Fubara as a constitutional somersault and aberration that must not be allowed to continue.
Justice Abdulmalik also held that Fubara’s action in implementing an unlawful budget smacked gross violations of the 1999 Constitution he swore to protect.
She restrained the CBN, Accountant General of the Federation, Zenith Bank, and Access Bank from further allowing Fubara to access money from the Consolidated Revenue and Federation Account.
Cited as defendants in the matter included the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Zenith Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc and the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF).
Others are Governor Siminalayi Fubara, the Accountant-General of Rivers; Rivers Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC; Chief Judge of Rivers, Hon. Justice S.C. Amadi; Chairman of RSIEC, Hon. Justice Adolphus Enebeli (rtd.) and the Government of Rivers State.
The plaintiffs had approached the court, praying it to withhold all federal monthly allocations meant for Rivers state.
They predicated their case on the ground that Governor Fubara had yet to comply with the court order that directed him to represent the 2024 Appropriation Bill to the Amaewhule-led faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
According to the plaintiffs, the high court had in a judgment that was delivered by Justice James Omotosho, recognised Hon. Amaewhule as the authentic Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
They noted that the court invalidated the 2024 budget proposal that was presented before the four-member faction of the Assembly, led by Hon. Victor Oko-Jumbo.
The Hon. Amaewhule-led members of the Rivers State Assembly added that the Court of Appeal upheld the high court decision that was in their favour.
They alleged that Governor Fubara had continued to make unauthorized withdrawals from the consolidated revenues funds of Rivers state, in breach of section 120 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
