On Thursday, the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja affirmed the judgement of the Federal High Court which set aside the N800 billion budget passed by five members of the Rivers State House of Assembly which was led by Edison Ehie.
News About Nigeria reports that the court also dismissed the appeal filed by Governor Siminalayi Fubara on the grounds that it lacked merit.
In its judgement, the court held that the governor’s appeal lacked merit because he had withdrawn his counter-affidavit at the lower court in the matter and as such cannot commence an appeal in a matter he did not challenge at the trial stage.
The court also stated that the situation in Rivers State House of Assembly is an executive dictatorship by the governor and a joke taken too far.
Furthermore, the appeal court ruled that by encouraging five members of the Assembly to pass a budget, the governor violated the 1999 Constitution, which barred few legislators from passing a budget.
The judgement partly reads, “What the trial judge did was to give life by preserving the sanctity of the judicial process,” the appeal court stated, noting that the governor’s failure to contest at the trial court indicates an admission of its judgment. The challenges of the appeal by the appellant are self-inflicted,” the appeal court remarked, saying it was an act of indiscipline for the governor to sign the purported bill.
“This appeal is bereft of merit and is accordingly dismissed. The judgment of the trial court is hereby affirmed,” the appeal court concluded, ordering Fubara to pay over ten respondents N500,000 each as costs.