By Precious Akutamadu
Port Harcourt, July, 8, 2024
The Rivers State House of Assembly faction, loyal to former governor, Nyesom Wike, has given Gov. Siminalayi Fubara a seven-day ultimatum to re-present the 2024 budget of the state.
The Speaker of the faction, Martins Amaewhule, gave the ultimatum during a sitting of the members in Port Harcourt on Monday.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Fubara had presented the 2024 budget when his current Chief of Staff, Edison Ehie emerged as the speaker.
Fubara had also signed the budget into law after its passage by the then Ehie-led assembly.
Meanwhile, the Amaewhule-led faction only resumed sitting on Monday after several months of legislative inactivity.
A Rivers State High Court had held that Amaewhule and 24 other pro-Wike lawmakers had lost their seats after decamping from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In its judgment last week, the Court of Appeal overturned the lower court’s decision and declared Amaewhule as the authentic speaker of the house.
The Appeal Court held that the Rivers State High Court had no jurisdiction to hear matters relating to the decampment of lawmakers.