Fubara, Lawmakers Battle Stalls Rivers N1.85tn Budget
Revelations have emerged as to why the 2026 Appropriation Bill submitted by Governor Siminalayi Fubara to the Rivers State House of Assembly has not been passed into law, one month after the lawmakers received it.
Investigations revealed that fresh agreements between the Martin Amaewhule-led Assembly and the governor are the major reason for the delay in passing the budget, even as little has been heard about the proposal.
Recall that Fubara presented an appropriation bill of N1.854tn, christened the “Budget of Resilience for Growth and Development,” to the Assembly for consideration and approval on July 10, 2026.
Receiving the budget from the governor, the Speaker expressed concern over the late presentation but assured that lawmakers would give the proposal the attention it deserved in the interest of the state.
The delay has raised concerns, especially as the budget was presented late due to the lingering political crisis that rocked the state.
Also, there has been little information about the budget defence or other legislative proceedings expected to allow lawmakers to scrutinise the proposal before its passage.
Investigation showed that some projects across the state, including the multi-billion-naira Ring Road, are either not being executed or are being carried out on a limited scale, apparently due to the lack of appropriated funds.
However, criticisms have trailed the proposed N41.4bn allocation to the state House of Assembly, with some stakeholders and residents saying the amount is too high, while a few have defended the allocation because the House requires adequate funding to carry out its functions.
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, while responding to questions from journalists during a special media chat in Port Harcourt last Tuesday, hinted at the reason for the delay, alleging that his successor, Fubara, had failed to fulfil almost all the agreements reached with the lawmakers and those he described as “the family.”
He specifically alleged that the governor had refused to fund the state House of Assembly Service Commission, among other obligations.
Wike stated, “The issue of budget, I know why you asked because you expected that once the budget is presented today, it will be passed tomorrow.
“Remember it won’t be that easy. But at the end of the day, the budget will be passed.
“This is why I tell people, yes, they have settled, but you see, do we just do it? Those things you expect them to do, but at the end of the day the budget will be passed and sent to the governor for his assent.
“I will tell you totally that the governor has failed 90 per cent of what they all agreed on.
“Take, for example, he did not release funds to the State Assembly Commission and the rest of them. Cars were not provided.
“If the governor did not want to work with us, the governor would be okay, I’m the governor, and I will join the other party, which is also very dangerous.
“Or I will stay and betray, which is also very dangerous. There is no way you can play it.
“Therefore, it’s better, and it’s good for the interest of the state to work with the family. It’s all over the world.”
It was gathered that the lawmakers, out of what they termed goodwill and interest of the state, reached some undisclosed agreements with the governor before allowing the late presentation of the appropriation bill.
Most stakeholders were said to be disappointed that the bill, which they had expected the lawmakers to expeditiously consider and pass to prevent an imminent constitutional crisis, had been delayed for over a month.
A close source in the Assembly, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said fresh agreements between Fubara and the lawmakers were responsible for the delay.
“To resolve the lingering political crisis, the governor met with the lawmakers on his 2026 appropriation bill. They had an agreement, and the deal paved the way for the lawmakers to allow the governor to present his appropriation bill.
“But the governor has not been able to fulfil the agreements. Nobody forced him to enter into the agreement, which the lawmakers know is within his capacity to fulfil. Instead of doing it once, he is doing it in piecemeal,” the source disclosed.
When asked about the components of the new agreement, the source simply said, “I don’t have details of all of them. But some of them have to do with the lawmakers’ benefits and entitlements, especially their constituency projects.
“The governor has not done anything for them since assuming office, and I think they expect him to pay most of their outstanding benefits, and he agreed to do so, but hasn’t kept to his promise.”
He insisted that the lack of mutual trust between the governor and the lawmakers, following a series of unfulfilled promises and unkept agreements, had contributed to the delay in passing the bill.
“The House of Assembly does not trust the governor because of a series of broken promises and unfulfilled agreements. So, in any new agreement, they want the governor to satisfy his own side of the bargain first. What they are asking for is legitimate.
“They are not begging for it, and nobody forced the governor to agree to it. They only want him to fulfil it now because they don’t believe he will still do it after getting the budget,” he said.
Efforts to reach the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Onwuka Nzeshi, failed, as he neither answered calls put across to his mobile nor replied to messages sent to him as of the time of filing this report.
