The Supreme Court on Monday reserved judgment on four separate appeals concerning the ongoing legal dispute over political leadership in Rivers State.
The apex court withheld its decisions on the appeals and stated that a judgment date would be communicated to the parties involved after hearing arguments from the lawyers representing both sides.
Naijaonpoint reports that Justice Musa Uwani Aba-Aji, who presided over a five-member panel of justices, announced that all parties would be notified once the judgments were ready.
The four appeals, identified by case numbers SC/CV/1174/2024, SC/CV/1175/2024, SC/CV/1176/2024, and SC/CV/1177/2024, involve the Rivers State House of Assembly challenging various entities, including the Rivers State Government, the Governor, the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), and the Accountant General of Rivers State.
These appeals stem from judgments issued by the Federal High Court in Abuja, which restricted the release of monthly funds from the Federation Account to Rivers State. Additionally, one of the rulings barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from providing voter registers to the state government for conducting local government elections, among other restrictions.
Recall that Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja had previously ordered the suspension of federal allocations to Rivers State until Governor Siminalayi Fubara presented the state budget before the House of Assembly, led by Speaker Martins Amaewhule and loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.