Human Rights activist, Ann-Kio Briggs, has said the Supreme Court judgement on political crisis in Rivers State was against the Rivers people.
Briggs expressed worry that President Bola Tinubu, who was uncomfortable as governor, when former President Olusegun Obasanjo stopped local government allocation for Lagos, could remain silent on Rivers’ allocation.
Naijaonpoint reported that the Supreme Court last week, in its ruling, halted sending Rivers’ State monthly allocation to Governor Siminalaya Fubara.
In an interview with News Central on Tuesday, Mrs. Briggs noted that President Tinubu’s silence was improper having experienced the political crisis Fubara is facing.
“We have today a President who, in the person of President Bola Tinubu, who has gone through a very similar thing during his own tenure as governor, when his allocation, his local government allocation, was stopped by Obasanjo for a purpose.
“Now, did he, as a human being, and as a governor, accept what was being done to him, which is very similar to what is being done to Siminalayi Fubara. No, he did not. And therefore, the question remains, why does he think that the people of River State and the Governor of River State that represents them will allow what he is turning a blind eye to, today, in Nigeria?” Briggs said.
The Rivers State rights activist condemned the Supreme Court’s ruling. She stated that the ruling was against the people of the state and created a vacuum.
She stressed that the economy of the state would be affected as teachers and other employees of the governemnt would not be paid salaries.
“They think the injustice is against Fubara. But it’s not. It’s against the people of River State. The government is not going to be able to pay teachers. They’re not going to be able to pay all employees, employees of government at local level.
“And so you’re going to ask yourself, who is the Supreme Court punishing? This Supreme Court is the same Supreme Court that has left a vacuum. There is a vacuum at the level of local government right now by the decision and judgment that the Supreme Court has given against the people and the government of River State,” she stated.