Fubara Presents N800bn 2024 Budget To Rivers Assembly …Ehie Declares 25 Defected Lawmakers’ Seat Vacant

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, on Wednesday presented an appropriation bill of N8000billion for 2024 to the State House of Assembly.
The budget presentation took place within the Rivers Government House following Wednesday’s demolition of the State House of Assembly complex by the State government.
The Assembly complex was demolished early Wednesday morning due to structural defects it suffered following the fire incident which razed the chamber in October and destroyed property worth millions of naira.
Fubara, while reading the budget estimate of N800billion, said the bill was christened, ‘Budget of Renewed Hope, Consolidation and Continuity.’
A breakdown of the budget showed that N410billion was allocated to capital expenditure, representing 51 per cent while over N361billion was allocated to recurrent expenditure, representing 49 per cent of the budget.
Fubara said the 2024 budget proposal was anchored on the assumptions of the crude oil price benchmark being $70/barrel at 1.5 million barrels per day production, with an exchange rate of N750 to the dollar.
According to him, the budget will be funded from internally generated revenue, Federation Account Allocation Committee receipts, 13 per cent oil derivation fund, Value Added Tax, Excess Crude, and grants from development agencies.
The governor said, “Our total projected revenue for the year 2024 is N800,392,485,433.1 as proposed 2024 budget estimate. This includes recurrent expenditure, N361,998,242,570.85; capital expenditure is N410,266,485,90.64.”
Fubara explained that great care would be taken to promote economic development through inclusive growth, provision of critical infrastructure that would support economic activities, businesses, and social activities, enabling environment for private sector-led industrialisation, job creation, and poverty alleviation.
Stating the objective of the budget, Governor Fubara said, “the overall policy objectives of the 2024 budget are to promote economic development in the State through inclusive growth, the provision of critical infrastructure to support economic, business, and social activities, and the creation of an enabling environment for private sector-led industrialization, job creation and poverty reduction.
“We will strive to address the challenges of socio-economic inequalities by ensuring improved access to quality and affordable education, healthcare, water, electricity, housing, social investments, gender empowerment and social inclusion.
“This accounts for the reasonably high allocations in the 2024 capital budget to infrastructure, education, healthcare, social development, environment, sustainable development and agriculture.
“With these funds, we will build more road networks to interconnect the State, rehabilitate, equip, train and staff all dilapidated primary and secondary schools, build technical and vocational education centres, and allocate more funds to our tertiary schools to improve the quality of teaching, learning and research.
“We will also rehabilitate, equip and staff dilapidated primary healthcare facilities, restore, equip, and staff all our general hospitals, complete, equip and staff all five zonal hospitals, implement socially beneficial healthcare schemes, and introduce social investment schemes to fight poverty, social exclusion, and gender discrimination.
“Given the importance of the judiciary in the advancement of the rule of law, economic growth, and social accountability, we have also improved the allocation for the funding of the judiciary, law, and justice sectors in this budget to achieve effective and speedy dispensation of justice in the State.
“We will ensure that accessed local and international credits are used only for capital projects that would benefit economic growth, give attention to the completion of ongoing projects before embarking on new ones, and grow the economy through targeted investments in areas of comparative economic advantage, including commercial agriculture, electricity generation, renewable energy, oil and gas, housing, and sports development.
“We will also provide our young people with the skills and tools they need to succeed in the 21st-century economy and to ensure that education and healthcare are accessible to all regardless of background and means.”
The House Speaker, Rt. Hon. Edison Ehie, thanked the governor for what he termed a ‘very elaborate budget speech’.
Ehie said, “In line with the provisions of the constitution, you have presented today to the House, the appropriation Bill 2024. Your Excellency, you are aware that the primary responsibility of government is the welfare and security of the people.
“We therefore appreciate you wholeheartedly for keying into the requirements of the constitution by aligning yourself with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Federal Government anchored by our President, Bola Tinubu, and on consolidation and continuity with regards to achievements of successive administrations.”
Ehie, during the session, said the complex was due for repairs following the explosion that rocked the building on October 30, 2023, adding that the governor would provide an alternative place for the lawmakers to sit in the meantime.
In a statement, the Ehie-led lawmakers said the 10th Rivers State House of Assembly had relocated to the State Government House, Port Harcourt, as an alternative sitting place following the ongoing renovation of the Assembly complex.
It stated that at the resumed sitting, the House of Assembly elected Adolphus Timothy Orubienimigha, a member, representing Opobo/Nkoro State Constituency, as the leader.
The Ehie-led Assembly had, before the arrival of the governor, met and declared vacant the seats of the 25 members that defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Monday.
The speaker declared the seats of 25 out of the 27 PDP lawmakers who recently defected to the APC vacant in line with Section 109 (1) (g) and 2 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended.
Ehie, while responding to the motion to declare the seats of their colleagues who cross carpeted said “This House received correspondents in notices, communications, including letters from 25 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly of their formal defection from the PDP to the APC.
“We have also confirmed this through videos that were posted via media houses and social media. We are aware that it is the right of members and every Nigerian with regard to association.
“While we respect that constitutional right, we are also mindful as a legislative assembly of our allegiance to the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 as amended, and our oath of office to defend the Constitution which is the ground norm of the country and the authority which every other law derives its power.
“Therefore, as a legislative assembly with leadership, I’m aware that the actions of these honourable members’ colleagues of the House who have been on suspension are a gross violation of the constitution, which provides that a member of this State House of Assembly shall only defect to another party other than the party under which they were elected to the House where there is a division or crisis in the parent party.
“We are aware that there is no division or crisis in our great party, the PDP, and therefore the provision of section 109 sub-1 paragraph G of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended attracts a vacation of the seats of these honourable members of the House.”
He added, “Consequently, distinguished colleagues, the House having deliberated formally on the motion before it in line with our standing order and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, I hereby declare the seats of the affected members of the Rivers State House of Assembly vacant.
“Distinguished colleagues, the House will duly inform the Independent National Electoral Commission of the vacancies in the Rivers State House of Assembly and the need to conduct fresh election to fill the above vacant seats within the time frame provided by the law.
”The House as it stands now is only left with six legitimate and constitutionally recognized members. And in line with the 1999 constitutionally precisely session 102, the House will effectively continue to discharge its responsibility of legislation, representation and oversight notwithstanding vacancies in the membership of the Assembly.”
Recall that on Monday, 27 PDP members defected to the APC, citing division within the PDP at the national level.

By: Boye Salau & Soibi Max-Alalibo