Court nullifies N800 billion Rivers budget passed by pro-Fubara lawmakers.

Justice James of the Federal High Court in Abuja has nullified the N800 billion budget passed by the Edison Ehie-led group of the Rivers State House of Assembly and signed into law by the Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara.

The court also upheld the lawsuit that the Assembly and Speaker Martin Amaewhule filed against Fubara, which sought, among other things, an order of injunction prohibiting the governor from undermining the Assembly while he served as speaker.

On December 13, 2023, Fubara presented the N800 billion budget proposal for 2024 to five members of the State Assembly, including Edison Ehie, who would later resign from the House, in the midst of the protracted political crisis that was roiling the oil-rich state and the demolition of the Assembly Complex.

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 Ehie’s contender, Martins Amaewhule, from using the Assembly Complex.

Ehie and the other pro-Fubara lawmakers passed the budget estimates and the governor subsequently signed the bill into law, saying it is aimed at promoting economic development through inclusive growth and addressing socio-economic inequality in the state.