By Vivian Okejeme Abuja
The Supreme Court, on Monday, dismissed an appeal filed by Governor Siminalaye Fubara challenging the Court of Appeal judgement that affirmed Hon. Martin Amaewhule as the authentic Speaker of the Rivers State Assembly.
The Justice Uwani Abba-Aji’s five-member panel dismissed the appeal marked SC/CV/1071/2024 after it was withdrawn.
When the matter was called up for hearing, Monday, Governor Fubara, through his team of lawyers led by Mr. Yusuf Ali, SAN, announced his decision to withdraw the appeal.
Ali, SAN, told the court that his client’s decision was based on the fact that the matter had been overtaken by events.
Reacting, Counsel to Amaewhule-led Rivers State lawmakers, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, did not oppose the withdrawal, he, however, demanded the cost.
Also, Mr. J. B. Daudu, who appeared for the 3rd to 12th defendants, also asked for costs, even though he did not object to the notice of withdrawal.
The defendants further persuaded the apex court to dismiss the matter instead of striking it out, stressing that they had already exchanged processes with the appellant.
Consequently, in its ruling, the Justice Abba-Aji-led panel dismissed the appeal, even as it awarded N4 million costs against Governor Fubara.
Addressing newsmen shortly after the dismissal of the suit, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria Ken Njemanze said that the coast has been finally cleared for the 27 lawmakers to take over the House of Assembly fully.
The senior advocate explained that all steps taken by Fubara in the absence of the 27 lawmakers, including presentation of the 2024 and 2025 budgets to only 3 lawmakers among others, have become a nullity.
It will be recalled that the Appeal Court in Abuja had, in a unanimous verdict it delivered on October 10, 2024, validated the Amaewhule-led members of the Assembly as bona fide lawmakers for the state.
In the same vein, the Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice James Omotosho on January 22, 2024, nullified the passage of Rivers State’s N800 billion 2024 budget by four members of the House of Assembly.
The court had described the bill’s passage by the four lawmakers, led by Hon. Ehie Edison, as an aberration and illegality.
It consequently ordered Governor Fubara to re-present the budget to the Hon. Martins Amaewhule-led Assembly.
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