Rivers Crisis: Governor Fubara Reacts To Supreme Court Judgement, "Urchins are Celebrating"

• Governor Siminalayi Fubara has reacted to the recent Nigerian Supreme Court judgement relating to the 2024 budget
• The Rivers state governor said there was no Supreme Court judgement against him despite some recent speculation
• According to Fubara, he decided to withdraw the appeal because the 2024 budget cycle ended on December 31, 2024

Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over 7 years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international events

Port Harcourt, Rivers State – Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers state has remarked that he was not moved by the recent Supreme Court judgment on the 2024 budget.

Legit.ng reported that on Monday, February 10, the country's highest court dismissed Fubara's suit against several members of the state house of assembly loyal to Nyesom Wike.

The five-member panel of the apex Abuja-based court awarded a cost of N4 million against the governor.

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According to the judges, the money should be paid to the Rivers State House of Assembly and Martin Amaewhule, the factional speaker.

Fubara said the appeal was unnecessary because the 2024 budget cycle ended on December 31, 2024.

As reported by Vanguard, the Rivers state governor expressed confidence in his decision to withdraw the appeal.

This was contained in a statement issued by Commissioner for Information and Communication, Warisenibo Joe Johnson, on Monday, February 10, 2025.

“The appeal is of no useful purpose. The only reasonable thing left to do was to withdraw the appeal and have it dismissed.”

The governor further stated that:

“The Supreme Court is a very busy court. It would be unwise to burden the Honourable Court with academic appeals that hold no practical or utilitarian value. That is the appeal the urchins are celebrating."

According to the statement, the apex court's judgement was not against Governor Fubara per se.

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Warisenibo explained that they only ruled on Fubara’s voluntary withdrawal of the appeal, which became irrelevant following the full implementation of the 2024 budget.

“There is no Supreme Court judgment against Governor Fubara. Ignore the outdated political propaganda by some desperate politicians,”

Lawyer reacts to Supreme Court’s ruling on Rivers crisis

Port Harcourt-based lawyer, Amadi Anyakweh Miracle, has weighed in on the Supreme Court's dismissal of Governor Siminalayi Fubara's appeal, dismissing claims that the ruling could undermine the governor's legitimacy or lead to impeachment.

In a chat with Legit.ng, Amadi criticized what he described as widespread falsehood, deception, and misinterpretation surrounding the ruling, alleging that some senior lawyers intentionally misled the public for political reasons.

He noted:

"We refuse to tell them the truth. We don't want to disclose these facts as they are. All of these things are actually what give rise to the misinterpretation and misinformation over what happened."

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On whether the judgment could fuel impeachment attempts by the faction of the state House of Assembly loyal to former Governor Nyesom Wike, Amadi stressed that constitutional procedures must be strictly followed.

He said:

"Impeachment proceedings, as enshrined in the constitution, have to be followed. It's not a very simple procedure. If those procedures are not followed, the impeachment cannot hold. But we don't know what are the intentions. What these people are asking for is — let them come and present budgets."

Regarding former governor Nyesom Wike’s influence at the federal level and its possible impact on Fubara’s administration, Amadi avoided speculation but emphasized the need for governance based on due process rather than political conflicts.

As he put it:

"I don't know about Wike's influence, but all we're asking for is the right thing to be done. If you have to spend the state’s money, follow the right channel."

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Amadi also pointed out that the Supreme Court's ruling reaffirmed that lawmakers in the Rivers Assembly had not defected, urging the governor to reconcile with them for the benefit of the state.

"Wake up to the reality that the court said they did not defect and then reconcile with them—work with them and advance your state," he advised.

He lamented that Rivers has repeatedly lost out on opportunities at the national level due to political rifts between its leaders.

He said:

"We are supposed to be taking advantage of Wike's presence in the national [government], but we are not. This keeps happening—even when Amaechi was there, we didn't get anything because of the rift between the two of them."

Amadi expressed hope that the crisis would eventually be resolved in a way that benefits the people of Rivers.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that a political analyst, Kelly Agaba, sent a message to the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesome Wike.

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The coordinator of the Citizens Coalition said Wike should accept the court's decision and respect that Governor Sim Fubara was the state's party leader.

However, Agaba also hailed Fubara for standing up to Wike's so-called godfatherism and for showing everyone that they did not have to be held back.

Source: Legit.ng