Rivers State Crisis: Fubara To Represent 2024 Budget As Parties Ceasefire

The Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara will represent the 2024 Budget proposal before the state House of Assembly under the leadership of Martin Amaewhule as the Speaker of the House.

This was part of the resolutions all parties involved in the matter agreed to at the peace meeting Monday.

The meeting was held in Abuja with President Bola Tinubu and the political gladiators in the oil-rich South-South state.

The meeting had in attendance Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Also at the meeting were Vice President Kashim Shettima,  the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, ex-Rivers governor, Peter Odili and some traditional rulers from the state.

The rift between Wike and Fubara split lawmakers in the House with 27 of them decamping from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), a party in whose central government Wike currently serves as minister.

The feud also saw the emergence of parallel sittings, an impeachment plot against the governor, the demolition of the Assembly complex, and a gale of resignations of pro-Wike commissioners in Fubara’s cabinet.

Meanwhile, after Monday’s meeting, the warring parties agreed that all matters instituted in the courts by Fubara, and his team, be withdrawn immediately.

Among those who signed the agreement are the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, Sim Fubara, Nyesome Wike, Martin Amaewhule and other gladiators in the crisis.

Resolutions

The Wike camp also agreed that all impeachment proceedings initiated against the governor by the Rivers State House of Assembly be dropped immediately.

The parties in the feud resolved to recognise the leadership of Martin Amaewhule in the Rivers State House of Assembly and not that of Edison Ehie.

The two camps agreed to recognise Amaewhule and his 26 allies who recently resigned from the PDP to the APC.

Other resolutions:

“The remunerations and benefits of all members of the Rivers State House of Assembly and their staff must be reinstated immediately and the Governor of Rivers State shall henceforth not interfere with the full funding of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

“The Rivers State House of Assembly shall choose where they want to sit and conduct their legislative business without interference and/or hindrance from the Executive arm of Government.

“The Governor of Rivers State, Sir Fubara, shall represent the state budget to a properly constituted Rivers State House of Assembly.

“The names of all commissioners in the Rivers State Executive Council who resigned their appointments because of the political crisis in the state should be resubmitted to the House of Assembly for approval.

“There should not be a caretaker committee for the local governments in Rivers State. The dissolution of the Local Government administration is null and void and shall not be recognised.”