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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
Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.