As the Martin Amaewhule-led House of Assembly’s seven-day ultimatum for Governor Siminalayi Fubara to resubmit the 2024 budget approaches its deadline this week, uncertainty has once again descended onto Rivers State politics.
The July 8 deadline will expire on Monday if weekends are included in the calculation, or on Wednesday if they are not.
Dumle Maol, the chairman of the House Committee on the Judiciary, made a motion, which led to the Assembly’s decision.
Maol, who is also the Pro-Nyesom Wike Assembly’s Deputy Speaker, asked the House to formally inform the governor to propose the budget in light of a recent court decision that, in their opinion, confirmed Amaewhule’s leadership and verified their membership.
One of the main components of the December presidential peace agreement, which attempted to end the political unrest in the South-South state, was the budget’s re-presentation.
The ₦800 billion budget was previously presented by Governor Fubara to the Assembly under the direction of Edison Ehie, who is currently the Governor’s Chief of Staff.
At the moment, Victor Oko-Jumbo is the Assembly faction’s leader.
The fact that the budget is still in effect after being approved and signed into law suggests that the peace accord has broken down.
The demand for a re-presentation of the 2024 budget seems implausible, given Governor Fubara stated last week that his government is already working on the 2025 budget.
Since it started roughly eight months ago, the situation in Rivers State has gotten worse.
The State House of Assembly fire in October set the whole thing off, and from then on there were attempts to remove Fubara from office, a wave of resignations from the executive cabinet, and protests about local government management. An unsuccessful attack on the Presidential Hotel marked the end of this phase.
This week is the deadline for presenting the 2024 budget, and as the assembly and governor work through the continuing crisis, the political atmosphere in the state seems tight.
A pro-Fubara politician from Amaewhule’s neighborhood, Chijioke Ihunwo, has called the governor’s seven-day ultimatum ridiculous.
After switching from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ihunwo—who was nominated by the governor as the Caretaker Committee Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area—urged Amaewhule to accept his fate as a former assembly member.
Under the direction of former Senator John Azuta-Mbata, he urged the residents of the Ikwerre Ethnic Nationality, which includes the local government areas of Port Harcourt, Obio/Akpor, Ikwerre, and Emohua, to continue backing the governor.
The politician, who faced backlash after designating 100 assistants the previous week, stated that the move, which is being carried out by other CTC Chairmen, is intended to bring local government management closer to the people.
He said that other selections will be made in the next few days to show the inclusiveness of the Fubara-led administration.
