Fubara Begs Court to Lift CBN’s Ban on Rivers Allocations

Kehinde Fajobi

Governor Siminalayi Fubara has asked the Court of Appeal in Abuja to overturn the judgement that barred the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from releasing monthly allocations to Rivers State.

His legal team, led by Mr. Yusuf Ali, SAN, urged the three-member panel, headed by Justice Hamma Barka, to vacate the high court order issued by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik on October 30, which Fubara argued was made in bad faith.

Fubara’s appeal, marked CA/ABJ/CV/1303/2024, sought to nullify the adverse orders of the Federal High Court against the state.

The appeal was consolidated with five others arising from the same case, including those from the Rivers State Government, the Accountant-General of Rivers State, and Zenith Bank Plc.

The court had previously restrained the CBN from allowing Rivers State to access funds from the consolidated revenue account, following a suit filed by the faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly led by Hon. Martins Amaewhule.

Defendants in the matter included CBN, Zenith Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc, the Accountant-General of the Federation, Governor Fubara, and others.

On Friday, the Justice Barka-led panel reserved judgment after the appellants and respondents adopted their briefs of argument.

The Amaewhule-led faction of the Assembly, which is aligned with former Governor Nyesom Wike, had sought to withhold federal allocations based on Governor Fubara’s alleged failure to present the 2024 Appropriation Bill as ordered by the court.

Fubara’s team contended that the Amaewhule group had ceased to be legitimate lawmakers after defecting from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).