The Rivers State House of Assembly has given the state governor, Similaya Fubara 48 hours to present the 2025 budget to the lawmakers. The lawmakers made the request during their sitting in Port Harcourt on Monday. On January 2nd, Governor Fubara signed the ₦1.1 trillion 2025 Budget into law after presenting it to lawmakers led by Victor Oko-Jumbo. However, months later, the Supreme Court ruled that Martin Amaewhule and his group were legitimate members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, ending the leadership crisis that had split the house. In their first sitting after the judgement, the lawmakers asked the governor to present the budget, which he had named the “Budget of Inclusive Growth and Development.” The Supreme Court also ordered the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to withhold allocations to Rivers State for disobeying court orders. It further nullified the local government elections conducted in the state last year. In response, Fubara directed the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission to conduct fresh local government elections. “Furthermore, given the outlawing of caretaker arrangements in the local government system, I hereby direct the Heads of Local Government Administration to immediately take over the administration of the 23 local government councils pending the conduct of fresh elections by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission,” the governor said in a state broadcast on Sunday. He also instructed the “outgoing local government chairmen to formally hand over the levers of power to the Heads of Local Government Administration by Monday, 3rd March 2025.” Punch
