Supreme Court Reserves Judgment in Four Cases on Rivers State Political Crisis

The Supreme Court has reserved judgment in four separate legal battles surrounding the ongoing political leadership crisis in Rivers State. A five-member panel of justices, led by Justice Musa Uwani Aba-Aji, heard arguments from lawyers representing various parties before announcing that the court’s decisions would be delivered at a later date, which would be communicated to the concerned parties.

The cases, identified as SC/CV/1174/2024, SC/CV/1175/2024, SC/CV/1176/2024, and SC/CV/1177/2024, involve legal disputes between the Rivers State House of Assembly and entities including the state government, the governor, the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), and the state’s Accountant General. These cases stem from earlier rulings by the Federal High Court in Abuja, which restricted the release of federal allocations to Rivers State and barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from providing voter registers for the conduct of local government elections.

Previously, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court had ruled that federal allocations to Rivers State should be halted until Governor Siminalayi Fubara presented the state budget before the Martin Amaewhule-led House of Assembly. This decision was later overturned by the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which ruled that the judgment had resulted in “grave injustice.” Similarly, the appellate court nullified another Federal High Court ruling by Justice Peter Lifu, which had blocked the conduct of the October 5, 2024, local government elections in Rivers State, citing non-compliance with due process under state laws.

During Monday’s proceedings, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Joseph Bodunde Daudu represented the faction loyal to Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, while Chris Uche SAN led the legal team for Governor Siminalayi Fubara.