The Court of Appeal in Abuja has reserved its judgment on an appeal filed by Rivers State Governor, Mr. Siminalayi Fubara, challenging a Federal High Court ruling that halted the release of monthly allocations to the state.
The appeal seeks to overturn the October 30 judgment that ordered the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to stop disbursing federal allocations to Rivers State, citing constitutional violations by Governor Fubara related to the state’s budget presentation.
The dispute stems from a ruling by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, who found that Governor Fubara’s budget presentation to a faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly—loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike—was unconstitutional. She ordered the suspension of allocations to the state until the governor presented the budget to the full House of Assembly, which includes 27 lawmakers loyal to Wike.
Fubara’s legal team argued that the judgment was erroneous, as the faction of the Assembly in question no longer had legal standing due to the alleged defection of the legislators from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
During the appeal hearing, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Hamma Barka, listened to submissions from both sides and reserved judgment for a later date.
The case has attracted significant attention, as it concerns the constitutional validity of the governor’s actions and the legal procedure for allocating federal funds to states.
Meanwhile, the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) clarified that, despite the court order, the October 2024 federal allocation had been shared among all 36 states, including Rivers.
However, the OAGF explained that while the allocations had been made, the funds would not be credited to state accounts until the Central Bank completes its processing.
This delay in disbursement follows the court’s intervention, with the OAGF indicating it would comply with the legal instructions as they come.
The clarification came after the October 30 ruling from the Federal High Court, which temporarily blocked further disbursements to Rivers State.
In a statement, the OAGF reiterated its commitment to adhering to all court rulings but emphasized that the legal status of the disbursements remains uncertain pending the resolution of the appeal.
