The Supreme Court yesterday reserved judgements in four separate appeals surrounding the Rivers State political crisis.
Recall that the court had yesterday disposed of the appeal instituted by the state governor, Fubara against the judgement ordering him to re-present the state’s 2024 appropriation before the 27-man faction of the house led by Mr Martin Amaewhule.
Ruling after the counsel for both parties in the suit had adopted their processes for and against the various appeals the court said a date would be communicated to legal representatives.
The four appeals are marked SC/CV/1174/2024, between Rivers State House of Assembly and others against the Rivers State Government and nine others and SC/CV/1175/2024, between Rivers State House of Assembly and others against the Rivers State Governor and nine others.
The others are SC/CV/1176/2024, between Rivers State House of Assembly and others against Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), and nine others and SC/CV/1177/2024 between Rivers State House of Assembly and others against the accountant general of Rivers State and nine others.
They were in respect of some judgements delivered by the Federal High Court, Abuja which prohibited the release of monthly allocations to Rivers State from the Federation Account and another that barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing voter’s register to the state government for the purpose conducting local government election among others.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja, had ordered the stoppage of the release of allocations from the federal government to Rivers State until the governor presented the budget before the Martin Amaewhule-led House of Assembly members.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja, however, upturned the judgement on the grounds of grave injustice in the findings and decisions.
In another judgement, the Court of Appeal, upturned the decision of Justice Peter Lifu, also of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which had ruled against the conduct of the October 5, 2024, local government council election in Rivers on the grounds that due process of Rivers State laws on local government elections had not been followed.
