Supreme Court Reserves Judgments In Four Cases On Rivers Political Crisis

The Supreme Court on Monday reserved judgments in four separate legal battles on the raging political leadership tussles in Rivers State.

The Apex Court reserved judgments till a date that would be communicated to parties after talking arguments from lawyers involved in the matters.

Justice Musa Uwani Aba-Aji, who led a 5-man panel of justices that heard the cases, announced that parties would be communicated once the judgments are ready.

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; SC/CV/1175/2024, between Rivers State House of Assembly and others against the Rivers State Governor and nine others; 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 are in respect of some judgments delivered by the federal high court in Abuja which prohibited the release of monthly fund to Rives from the Federation Account and another that barred the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC from releasing voter register to the state government for the purpose conducting local government election among others.

It will be recalled that 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.

However, the Court of Appeal in Abuja, upturned the judgment of Justice, Joyce Abdulmalik on the grounds of grave injustice in the findings and decisions.

Similarly, the Court of Appeal, in another judgment, upturned the judgment 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 the due process of Rivers State laws on local government elections had not been followed.

At Monday’s proceedings, Joseph Bodunde Daudu SAN represented the camp loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory FCT Nyesom Wike while Chris Uche SAN led the camp of governor Simi Fubara.