Politics
Rivers: Supreme Court has declared war in the State – Amaechi’s ally
Also, the 27 pro-Wike lawmakers, who are the major beneficiaries of the court judgment, held a plenary immediately they learnt about the ruling.
In another development, the FCT minister was seen in a viral video with his allies, including some former and serving senators praising God for the victory at the Supreme Court.
They include Senator Allwell Onyesom, Magnus Abe, Kelechi Nwogu, Emeka Woke, Chibudom Nwuche. They sang and danced with the FCT minister in celebration of the court judgment.
Verdict, victory for democracy – Wike
Commenting on the judgment, Wike said the verdict reinforced the principle that a budget must be presented to a duly constituted legislature, ensuring that governance remained lawful and accountable.
He described the judgment as victory for democracy and the people of Rivers State.
“Let’s give God all the glory and honour. God has helped to do it for everybody and for the interest of the people and the state.
“A governor would go and bring down the House of Legislature, and we will act as if nothing has happened to an arm of government that is independent,” Wike added.
A five-member panel of the Supreme Court had on Friday affirmed the Martins Amaewhule-led Rivers House of Assembly members as valid lawmakers of the House.
The apex court said it was unconstitutional for Fubara to work with only four out of the 31 House of Assembly members.
The justices berated Fubara for breaking down the Rivers House of Assembly building as a way to stop the defected 27 lawmakers from sitting, thereby forcing them to sit outside to carry out their lawful activities.
“Four members sitting as purported members of the House of Assembly in disobedience to the subsisting order of the court is a nullity,” the apex court held.
The court added that the legislature represented the fulcrum of the Assembly and must be protected at all costs.
Justice Emmanuel Agim ordered that the Clerk and Deputy Clerk of the Rivers State House of Assembly, who were unlawfully redeployed out of the Assembly, be allowed to resume work alongside other Assembly workers.
The court queried Fubara for collapsing the Assembly building and using his immunity under Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution to carry out “barbaric acts” against the rule of law.
“It is my view that it is indiscipline born out of executive powers. This is a joke taken too far,” Justice Agim added.
Speaking further, he stated the 27 members of the House of Assembly must be allowed to resume their duties without being stopped.
“The government cannot be said to exist without one of the three arms of government. The illegal actions of the governor cannot be justified,” the court declared.
The Supreme Court awarded N5m in costs against Fubara.
In the same vein, the Supreme Court on Friday made a pronouncement stopping the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Accountant-General of the Federation from releasing funds to the Rivers State Government until the State House of Assembly was properly constituted in accordance with the 1999 Constitution.
Specifically, Justice Agim affirmed the judgment of the Federal High Court that barred the state’s allocation of funds.
Recall that Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on October 24, 2024, had in a judgment issued an order barring the CBN from further disbursing monthly financial allocations to the Rivers State Government.
Court declares LG polls invalid
Also, the apex court declared the October 5, 2024 local government elections in the state invalid.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Jamilu Tukur, the court declared the conduct of the local government polls in the state null and void.
The apex court in its decision set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal which nullified the decision of the trial court on the grounds that it had no jurisdiction and restored the decision of the Federal High Court.
The apex court stated that all the necessary conditions required to be implemented were disregarded by the Rivers State Electoral Commission.
Recall that Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja had restrained the RSIEC from proceeding with the conduct of the council polls on the grounds that the state voter’s register must be updated before the conduct of the poll.
Amaewhule mocks Fubara
Meanwhile, the Rivers State House of Assembly led by its Speaker, Martin Amaewhule, has hailed the judgment of the Supreme Court which recognised him and 26 other lawmakers as authentic members of the Assembly.
Amaewhule stated this during plenary on Friday while reacting to the judgment of the apex court, describing it as victory for democracy and rule of law.
He said with the judgment, Governor Fubara would repent from his sins, pointing out that the governor was running a criminal government with illegal appointees.
This was contained in a statement issued by the media aide to the Speaker, Martins Wachukwu, and sent to newsmen.
The statement was titled, ‘We believe Governor Fubara will repent from his legion of sins, now that the Supreme Court has spoken – Rivers Assembly Speaker’.
Meanwhile, the Chief Tony Okocha-led All Progressives Congress in Rivers State has hailed the Supreme Court judgment which put paid to what it described as the “protracted crisis rocking” the executive and legislative arms of the state.
The state APC Publicity Secretary, Chibike Ikenga, stated this in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Friday and sent to newsmen.
‘Judgment, declaration of war’
On his part, a chieftain of the APC in the state loyal to former Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, Chief Chukwuemeka Eze, said the Supreme Court judgment on Friday reinstating the 27 defected lawmakers as valid members of the Rivers of Assembly was a declaration of war on the state.
Eze described the ruling on Rivers crisis as not only a “black Friday” in the country’s nascent democracy, but a “declaration of war against Rivers State”.
Eze, who was the spokesman for the defunct New Peoples Democratic Party (n-PDP), however, commended and congratulated the governor for being a man by surviving the “onslaught of anti-democratic forces in Nigeria all these while.”
In the now-controversial post shared on his social media page, Osborne wrote: “In a sane clime president Bola Ahmed Tinubu would’ve respectfully and honourably resigned. I’m of APC but truth be told.”
The comment quickly generated reactions online before the Akwa Ibom State Government moved to terminate his appointment.
In a letter dated June 2, 2026, the Office of the Political Adviser to the Governor announced his immediate disengagement.
The termination letter, signed by the Political Adviser to the Governor, Prince Godwin Ntuk Udeh, stated that Osborne Ubong Okon had been relieved of his duties with immediate effect.Politics
According to the letter, the decision was taken over actions the office described as disloyal.
“You are hereby relieved of your engagement as a Media Aide to the Political Adviser to His Excellency the Governor, with immediate effect and from today, 2nd June 2026,” the memo read.
The letter further cited “actions bordering on disloyalty” and the need to keep the office “purified” as reasons for the dismissal.
The office also issued a warning to members of the public and government officials regarding future dealings with the former aide.
“Any person having dealings with the above-mentioned former Media Aide in relation to this office of his former engagement does so on his/her own peril,” the statement added.
The development has sparked fresh conversations about the limits of political expression for government appointees and the expectations of loyalty within public service, particularly when comments are directed at the presidency.
Neither Osborne nor the Presidency had publicly responded to the development as of the time of filing this report.
The decision was taken during plenary on Tuesday at the Assembly complex in Dutse, the state capital, as the party continues to deal with the fallout from recent primaries.
The action comes amid a wave of suspensions across Jigawa APC following the recently conducted primary election.
Several special advisers and special assistants have already been suspended statewide over alleged anti-party activities from state level down to local government level.
Maigari, who doubles as the councillor representing Auyo Ward, was suspended after the House considered a motion by the Majority Leader, Lawan Dansure.
The motion sought disciplinary action against the lawmaker for conduct deemed harmful to party cohesion.
Moving the motion during the Assembly’s plenary session on Tuesday, Dansure urged members to support the suspension.
He said the House must act to protect the integrity of the ruling party ahead of 2027.
According to him, the actions of the Speaker of Auyo Legislative Council are detrimental to the unity, stability, and progress of the All Progressives Congress in the state.
“His actions are detrimental to the unity, stability, and progress of the All Progressives Congress,” Dansure told the House.
He argued that anti-party conduct at the grassroots level could undermine APC’s performance in future elections.
He said the House could not fold its arms while party discipline was being tested.
“Hon. Haruna Maigari is hereby suspended as Speaker of Auyo Legislative Council over alleged anti-party activities,” Dangyatin announced during plenary.
The Speaker also said the House remains committed to party discipline at all levels of governance in the state.
Dangyatin then constituted an investigative committee to look into the matter and report back within two weeks.
“The committee is expected to establish facts and recommend further action based on its findings,” he said.
The Speaker also directed the suspended lawmaker to hand over all official documents in his possession to the Deputy Speaker of Auyo Legislative Council.
He said the handover must be done immediately to ensure continuity of council business.
Meanwhile, the House also received a formal notification from Governor Umar Namadi regarding an official trip.
“The governor is billed to attend a two-day West African Rice Investment Roundtable in Accra, Ghana,” the Speaker said during the plenary session of the Assembly.
Dangyatin, who explained that the governor’s foreign engagement will hold between June 2 and June 3, 2026, added that “the governor’s participation is aimed at attracting investment to Jigawa’s rice value chain.”
By Chinedu Sabastine
Mr. Samson Chukwu Nnamani has declared that he remains the authentic governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Enugu State ahead of the 2027 election.
Nnamani made this known on Friday during a press briefing held at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre, Enugu.
Reacting to allegations that he was suspended from the party before the PDP governorship primary election, Nnamani dismissed the claim, questioning how a supposedly suspended aspirant could participate in the exercise and secure votes.
“The purported claim that I was suspended is very funny. If I was suspended as they claim, how can they attribute votes for me during their kangaroo primary,” Nnamani questioned.
Represented by his Media Director, Dr. Buchi Nnaji, the PDP chieftain said his authenticity derives from the present recognition of the Abdulrahman-led faction of the PDP by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), of which he is a member.
The clarification followed the emergence of multiple claimants to the PDP governorship ticket in Enugu State.
Nnamani insisted that the party was no longer factionalised following INEC’s recognition of the Abdulrahman-led PDP leadership, noting that the panel which declared him winner where sent from their headquaters, Abuja.
Nnamani expressed gratitude to PDP leaders and supporters whom he said turned out massively on Sunday, May 24, 2026, to elect him as the party’s governorship candidate.
He pledged to reposition Enugu State through infrastructure development, job creation and people-oriented policies.
“As the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate in Enugu State, I remain committed to the ideals of good governance, inclusive leadership, economic development, youth empowerment, quality education, improved healthcare and enhanced security for all residents,” he said.
He added that his aspiration was to build “a greater Enugu State where opportunities abound for every citizen, irrespective of political affiliation, religion or social status.”
According to him, his administration would prioritise infrastructure development, industrialisation, support for small businesses and welfare programmes aimed at improving the lives of the people.
“We shall also review and remove policies and practices that are truncating the wellbeing, economic survival and social advancement of the citizens,” he stated.
Nnamani further called on stakeholders, party faithful, youths, women, traditional rulers and the people of Enugu State to join hands in building “a united, peaceful and progressive state.”
“Together, we can achieve the Enugu of our dreams,” he added.
The Presidency has reacted following the circulation of an alleged WhatsApp voice note in which President Bola Tinubu reportedly claims he begged opposition figure Peter Obi to step down ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The reaction came on Wednesday from Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to the President.
Onanuga condemned the audio file, labeling it a fabrication and called for legal action against popular social media critic VeryDarkMan who shared it.
“This VDM needs to face the weight of the law for being the conveyor and disseminator of a fake audio of President Tinubu. This is a clear case of an egregious abuse of the social media platform.,” Onanuga tweeted.
In the viral video, VeryDarkMan used the alleged leaked audio to urge Nigerians to vote against President Tinubu’s reelection bid in the upcoming 2027 polls.
Recall that just days ago, on Saturday, May 23, 2026, President Tinubu secured the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in a landslide nationwide direct primary election.
During that contest, Tinubu faced a lone challenger, Edo State businessman and APC chieftain Stanley Osifo. The President won with 10,999,162 votes from the 12,643,306 registered party members, while Osifo secured 16,503 votes.
Meanwhile, Peter Obi, who finished third in the 2023 election, is widely expected to fly the flag for the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC). Both Obi and Tinubu hail from the southern region of Nigeria and are set to face last year’s runner-up, Atiku Abubakar, who is expected to lead the ticket for the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
The governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party in Ebonyi State, Ifeanyichukwuma Odii, has accused Governor Francis Nwifuru of running the state like a personal family business.
Odii made the remark shortly after emerging as the PDP governorship candidate for the 2027 election following the party’s primary election conducted across the 13 local government areas of the state.
Speaking to party supporters in Abakaliki, Odii said the 2027 election would be about rescuing Ebonyi from poor governance and restoring economic growth and public welfare.
“Ebonyi can never be consumed. Ebonyi can never be conquered. Ebonyi can never become a personal family business, and we are here for the rescue of our dear state,” he stated.
The PDP flag bearer pledged to improve the welfare of civil servants and teachers while promising policies aimed at reviving the state’s economy.
Odii also dismissed fears over political opposition ahead of the election, insisting that his focus remained the development and progress of Ebonyi State.
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