Court gavel
Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed July 18 for ruling on a motion seeking to restrain the National Assembly from approving budgets or appointments of the Rivers State Government under the current Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd.).
The motion was filed by some indigenes of Rivers State and a group, the Registered Trustees of Hope Africa Foundation, who argued that the National Assembly’s actions were unconstitutional.
Their lawyer, Ambrose Owuru, prayed the court to restrain the defendants from further acting on any requests from the emergency government in the state pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Owuru contended that the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers was without the required legislative approval because the voice votes adopted by the National Assembly in approving the emergency rule was unconstitutional.
However, the National Assembly and its Clerk, represented by Mohammed Galadima, urged the court to reject the motion for interlocutory injunction, arguing that it was without merit. Galadima argued that the facts deposed to in the plaintiffs’ supporting affidavit to the motion “are contrived falsehood and calculated misrepresentation of the facts as they occurred.”
He added that the grant of the motion would create pandemonium and confusion in governance in Rivers State and would not be in the interest of justice.
Justice James Omotosho fixed July 18 for the ruling, which will determine whether the National Assembly will be restrained from approving budgets or appointments of the Rivers State Government under the current Sole Administrator.
