Rivers Crisis: Ohanaeze Chieftain Urges Tinubu, Ex-governors, To Mediate

A chieftain of the Igbo socio-cultural organisation Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Ugochukwu Nduwuisi, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former governors of Rivers State, and their deputies to quickly mediate the current political impasse in the state to find an enduring solution.

In a statement made available to journalists on Monday, Nduwuisi, who was the founder and president of Ohanaeze Ndigbo in Spain, urged the former leaders of the state to speak out now and invite the incumbent Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his predecessor, and current Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Mr. Nyesom Wike to resolve the problem before it worsens.

Citing the recent Federal High Court ruling directing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to stop further monthly allocations to the state, Nduwuisi said, “The former  governors of Rivers State and their former deputies should speak out now and invite both parties and, possibly include President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to mediate and resolve this problem at this early stage so that  other states don’t start emulating this  fraudulent/manipulated legal route as a new trend to frustrate the entire country’s democratic  process.”

According to him, judges should not be in a hurry to judge some instances so that their integrity is not in doubt.

The Ohanaeze chieftain recalled what he described as the good works Nyesom Wike, the immediate past governor of Rivers State did in the state for eight years before being appointed the current FCT Minister.

He noted that Governor Fubara took up the mantle of leadership and set to continue the good works of his predecessor from where the former stopped so that the people of Rivers State and residents in Rivers State could enjoy the dividends of democracy.

Recall that a federal high court in Abuja presided over by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik had, on October 10, 2024, issued an order barring the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from further disbursing monthly financial allocations to the Rivers State Government.

The ruling also extended to the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), Zenith Bank, and Access Bank, where the state holds accounts.

In her judgment, Justice Abdulmalik ruled that Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s receipt and use of monthly allocations since January 2024 constituted a violation of the constitution that can not be permitted to continue.

The judge described Fubara’s presentation of the 2024 budget to a four-member Rivers House of Assembly as a direct affront to constitutional requirement, adding that the governor’s implementation of the budget reflects a gross breach of the 1999 Constitution, which he is bound to uphold.