Fubara Under Fire: Wike’s Ally Claims Rivers Governor Squandering Public Money

Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, has accused Governor Siminalayi Fubara of illegally spending Rivers State funds.

Olayinka made this claim in a post on Monday, following the Supreme Court’s ruling on the 2024 budget, which Fubara had presented to a faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

The apex court imposed a ₦2 million fine on Governor Fubara over the case challenging the legality of the state’s 2024 budget. Additionally, the Supreme Court dismissed Fubara’s appeal contesting a previous court decision that declared the budget unlawful.

A five-member panel led by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji dismissed the appeal after Fubara’s lawyer, Yusuf Ali, withdrew the case. The appeal had contested the legitimacy of the Martin Amaewhule-led faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly, to which Fubara had not presented the budget.

Reacting to the Supreme Court’s decision, Olayinka asserted that the judgment confirmed Fubara’s unauthorized expenditure of state funds.

“With today’s Supreme Court ruling, it’s now clear that Governor Fubara has been spending Rivers State money ILLEGALLY,” Olayinka wrote on X.