It was a day of two worlds for Rivers State people. Some were jubilating because Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court Abuja stopped the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from further releasing monthly financial allocations to the Rivers State Government, while others attended a Thanksgiving event in Port Harcourt with Governor Fubara.

Governor Sim Fubara shortly after the judgement proceeded to the Alfred Diete Spiff Civic Center Main Bowl for a one-day Thanksgiving event in appreciation of God’s mercies and grace upon Rivers State. He declared that the judgement was the least of his problem.

The Abuja judgement was the climax of intense intrigue and a power play for the control of Rivers State’s soul between the supporters of former Governor Nyesom Wike and the incumbent Governor Fubara. The suit was filed by a faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly, led by Martins Amaewhule.

Delivering her judgement Justice Abdulmalik held that the decision by Governor Siminalayi Fubara to present the Rivers State’s 2024 Appropriation Bill to a four-member Assembly, which was not properly constituted, should not be allowed to stand.

Justice Abdulmalik said that the governor’s action was a gross violation of the 1999 Constitution. The judge subsequently restrained the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Accountant General of the Federation, Zenith Bank, and Access Bank from further allowing Fubara to access money from the Consolidated Revenue and Federation Account.

Cited as defendants in the matter included the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Zenith Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc, and the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF). Others are Governor Siminalayi Fubara, the Accountant-General of Rivers; Rivers Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC; Chief Judge of Rivers, Hon. Justice S.C. Amadi; Chairman of RSIEC, Hon. Justice Adolphus Enebeli (rtd.) and the Government of Rivers State.

The plaintiffs had approached the court, praying it to withhold all federal monthly allocations meant for River’s State because Governor Fubara had yet to comply with the court order that directed him to represent the 2024 Appropriation Bill to the Amaewhule-led faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

The court order essentially puts a hold on any further transfer of funds from the FAAC to the Rivers State Government until the necessary legislative steps were taken. But the order did not dampen the spirit and mood of the governor who said the setback was for the uplifting of the State.

The governor discountenanced the order of the court as the least of his problems. He said his administration would continue to make payments to contractors and ensure workers’ salaries are disbursed from tomorrow.

Governor Fubara stated during a special thanksgiving event organised by the state government to celebrate his administration’s resilience amid escalating political crises, which began with the arson attack on the State House of Assembly complex exactly one year ago.

He also confirmed that allocations for the 23 Council Chairmen would be credited, as the Joint Accounts Allocation Committee (JAAC) procedures have been completed.

They claimed their LG chairmen would not leave office but today, we have 23 newly sworn-in chairmen. They claimed we would not have Commissioners, but we are working with a full complement of 23 Commissioners today.

The governor encouraged his supporters to remain resilient, assuring them that all challenges are surmountable. Reflecting on his administration’s success, Governor Fubara noted that despite predictions that his government would not last even a week, he has successfully led for over a year.

Highlighting his administration’s progress, he named some of the ongoing projects being executed across the state, countering critics who claimed he would be unable to deliver.

He also cited recent reports by BudGIT that named Rivers State as one of the leaders in financial accountability and transparency.

Recalling an incident from October 30 last year, Governor Fubara described a violent confrontation with men in police uniforms as an assassination attempt. He attributed the confrontation to political opponents, whom he accused of ambushing him after he withdrew legal cases against the Martin Amaewhule group, following an intervention by President Bola Tinubu.

While he expressed no regrets about seeking peace, he acknowledged that his peaceful disposition may have given his opponents an advantage, as they leveraged the withdrawal to secure judgments against him.