The Rivers State House of Assembly, under the leadership of Martin Amaewhule, has suspended all expenditures by Governor Siminalayi Fubara until he presents his budget to the lawmakers.
This decision was made during a plenary session on Monday, following a seven-day ultimatum given to the governor to submit his budget to the House.
Major Jack, the Leader of the House, raised a motion informing the Assembly about the expiration of the seven-day deadline given to the governor to present the 2024 budget.
After deliberation, the House voted to shut down the Rivers State Consolidated Revenue Account, effectively preventing Fubara’s administration from making any expenditures on behalf of the state.
It was reported that on July 8, the Amaewhule-led Assembly had given Fubara a seven-day deadline to resubmit the 2024 budget and accused him of breaching the provisions of the amended 1999 Constitution.
In a letter dated July 8, 2024, signed by Amaewhule and sent to Fubara on Monday, the House outlined the governor’s actions that violated the Constitution.
This order was issued during the first session of the pro-Wike House after a hiatus of several months.
Fubara had previously presented the budget to the faction, with his current Chief of Staff, Edison Ehie, presiding as Speaker. Ehie and the pro-Fubara lawmakers passed the budget estimates, which the governor then signed into law.
The ongoing political crisis between the governor’s loyalists and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, is marked by repeated interventions to resolve their differences.