Fourteen months after Isale Eko Descendants Union dragged the producers of ‘Gangs of Lagos‘ movie, Amazon Prime and others before the Lagos State High Court sitting at the Tafawa Balewa Square, there seems to be a respite as the concerned parties have reached a settlement while Prime Video has agreed to apologise for desecration of the Lagos culture.

The Isale Eko Descendants Union had sought an order compelling Lagos State Video and Film Censors Board to impose a N10 billion fine against Amazon Prime for the wrongful depiction of Isale Eko as a den of criminals and the Eyo Masquerade as a gang of murderers.

In a recent consent judgement in Suit No: LD/6903GCM/2023 between Isale Eko Descendants Union & 2 Others Vs AMAZON WEB SERVICES & 11 others delivered by Honourable Justice Idowu Alakija of the Lagos High Court, the producers and Amazon Prime agreed to tender an unreserved apology to the Applicants –Isale Eko Descendants Union in this regard.

Also, Amazon shall issue on its Letter Head, a letter recognising Isale Eko Descendants Union’s position that the movie “Gangs of Lagos” erroneously portrayed and disparaged the cultural heritage of the well-respected Eyo Masquerade and the peace-loving nature and the long-standing traditions of the Isale-Eko People.

A statement on Wednesday by Mr. Adeniji Kazeem, SAN, chairman, Isale-Eko Descendants Union confirmed the terms of settlement.

His statement read in part: “Today is a great day for the Isale-Eko Community of Lagos State, All indigenous Communities of Lagos and Lagosians generally. Today, the relatively small community of Isale – Eko in Lagos State was able to establish that along with other rights, there are inalienable cultural rights that accrue to indigenous communities that need to be vigorously protected.

“Indeed the 2007 United Nations Declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) states amongst other things that the culture of indigenous people must be protected. That indigenous people have intellectual property rights in their culture and there can be no exploitation or usage of those rights without the express permission of the indigenous communities.

“Today, Honourable Justice Idowu Alakija of the Lagos High Court has endorsed the Terms of Settlement entered into by the Isale Eko Descendants Union (Applicants) and Amazon Web Services (Defendant) along with 11 other Defendants as a Judgement of the Court. The judgement amongst other thing provides that:

“1. The 3rd – 11th Respondents (the Film Producers) shall jointly issue a letter recognizing the Applicants position that the Movie titled “Gangs of Lagos” erroneously portrayed and disparaged the cultural heritage of the well respected Eyo Masquerade and the peace-loving nature and the long-standing traditions of the Isale-Eko People, and shall therein, tender an unreserved apology to the Applicants – Isale Eko Descendants Union in this regard.

“2. The 12th Respondent (Amazon Web Services Nigeria Limited) shall issue on its: Letter Head, a letter recognizing the Applicants’ (Isale Eko Descendants Union) position that the Movie titled “Gangs of Lagos” erroneously portrayed and disparaged the cultural heritage of the well-respected Eyo Masquerade and the peace-loving nature and the long-standing traditions of the Isale-Eko People, and shall therein, tender an unreserved apology to the Applicants in this regard.

“We feel vindicated by this judgement and thank the Court system and the office of the Lagos State Attorney General for the positive role it played in resolving this dispute.

“However, we must state that the National and State Film censors must be more vigilant in the scrutiny of Films that are licensed for viewing either on physical screens or on digital platforms beaming into the Nigerian digital space.

“Furthermore, we assert that there are strong imperatives for Lagos State to revisit its Constitutional rights to properly oversee the production and censorship of Films utilizing its cultural material and resources.

“Finally, I thank our Royal Father Alaiyeluwa Oba Riliwanu Akiolu 1 (Oba of Lagos), our Legal team led by Mr. Supo Shasore SAN, the Isale Eko Descendants Union Trustees, Elders, Members and all well-meaning Lagosians who gave both physical and spiritual support.”

Justice Alakija had earlier granted the leave for judicial review in an ex-parte application brought pursuant to Section 3 of the Cinematograph Law of Lagos State and Order 44 Rule 3 of the High Court Civil Procedure Rules.

The Judge granted the leave after hearing arguments of Counsels for Isale Eko Descendants Union and two others, Mr. Olasupo Shasore (SAN), Mr. Adeniji Kazeem (SAN), Mr. Aderemi Bashua (SAN), Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, Akinwale Irokosu and Adesamola Alebiosu, Temi Tayo-Tiwo, Oyinkansola Tunde -Braimoh among others.

The applicants comprised Isale Eko Descendants’ Union, Chief Ayodele Bajulaiye, who sued on behalf of the Bajulaiye Chieftaincy Family and Eyo Iga Bajulaiye, and Chief Abdul-Waheed Ayeni who sued on behalf of the Sasore Chieftaincy Family and Eyo Iga Sasore.

They were challenging the movie’s producers including Ms. Jadesola Soberu, Ms. Kemi Lala Akindoju, Mr. Adesegun Adetoro, Demi Olubanwo, Mr. Olumide Soyombo, Mr Bankole Wellington, Mrs. Adesua Etomi-Wellington, Mr. Kola Aina, Greoh Limited and Amazon Web Services Nigeria for alleged sacrilegious and scandalous depiction of the Eyo Masquerade in the movie production ‘Gangs of Lagos’

On Wednesday, President Bola Tinubu met with Speaker Mudashiru Obasa and other aggrieved lawmakers behind closed doors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, due to the leadership crisis that rocked the Lagos State House of Assembly.

At the end of the meeting, President Tinubu reportedly directed that Obasa should retain his position as Speaker, with a strong warning to carry his colleagues along in decision-making.

Sources who spoke with Vanguard disclosed that the President also instructed Obasa to withdraw the court case related to the crisis, signaling an end to the internal conflict within the Assembly.

After the closed-door session, Obasa declined to speak to State House correspondents who had waited to get details of the meeting.

He had arrived at the Villa around 2:50 pm and was led separately to the President’s office, while his colleagues, who came in two coaster buses, had arrived earlier for the meeting.

Although the agenda of the meeting was not publicly disclosed, sources confirmed that the discussions revolved around resolving the leadership dispute in the Lagos Assembly.

Lawmakers Sing Loyalty Song

As the lawmakers emerged from Tinubu’s office around 4:30 pm, they were heard chorusing “On your mandate, we shall stand,” a popular political slogan used by Tinubu’s supporters to affirm their loyalty to him.

For about five minutes, the legislators continued their chants as they filed out towards the waiting coaster buses, visibly in high spirits.

Meanwhile, House of Representatives member James Faleke, who was present at the meeting, also refused to give details but simply stated, “It went well.”

Lawmakers Apologize To Obasa

Unconfirmed reports indicate that some lawmakers who supported Obasa’s impeachment have apologized to him following Tinubu’s intervention.

A member of the Assembly, who spoke anonymously with Vanguard, described the meeting as a “peace parley” and confirmed that an agreement was reached for Obasa to remain Speaker.

The lawmaker said: “Obasa is staying and we have no choice but to obey the President. The meeting was more of a family meeting.”

When asked whether the president reprimanded the anti-Obasa lawmakers for earlier impeaching Obasa, the source said, “No, it was more of a family matter. Mr President condemned his (Obasa’s) actions not to parley with us. He, however, said that since we did not carry him (Tinubu) along, and it was only Obasa that came to report the matter to him, he had no choice but to support him (Obasa).

“He also warned him (Obasa) that if there were any future complaints from any quarters, he would be gone. The President said he should let peace reign; and so based on that, we have accepted.”

The source said on the pending matter in court: “The President has instructed him to withdraw it.”

The Thailand police have arrested a Nigerian identified as Mbanaso for selling cocaine to a local tourist and now faces a jail term of up to two years.

This is just as another Nigerian identified simply as George was arrested for possession of cocaine substance and dangerous driving.

PUNCH Metro gathered from the website of a Thailand media, Khasod, on Wednesday, that the suspect was arrested following the arrest of a Swiss tourist who confessed that he purchased the drug from Mbanaso.

The report noted that following the Swiss confession on March 9, the police swooped on Mbanaso and arrested him near a local police station on Monday.

It read, “The tourist, identified only as Mr. Sascha, voluntarily entered drug rehabilitation and provided information to Kamala Police about his drug supplier.

“Sascha implicated a 32-year-old Nigerian national named Mbanaso, claiming he had purchased cocaine from him multiple times through WhatsApp, with payments made via bank transfers.

“On March 10, police conducted a sting operation and arrested Mbanaso at the entrance of Kamala Police Station at 9:40 p.m. with 0.82 grams of cocaine.”

The report noted that Mbanaso might be sentenced to two years imprisonment with an option of a fine or both.

“He faces charges of distributing Category 2 narcotics, which carries penalties of up to two years imprisonment, a fine not exceeding 40,000 baht or both,” the report noted.

On the arrest of George, the report highlighted that he and one other suspect were allegedly driving at top speed when police operatives tracked them to a location on Wednesday.

It noted that upon their arrest and subsequent investigation, the police discovered that George was an illegal resident who had overstayed his visa in the country and was on the wanted list for possession of cocaine.

It added that the suspect alongside his unidentified accomplice was allegedly intoxicated and uncooperative with the police at the time of their arrest.

It read, “On the night of March 11, Phuket City Police received reports of a Mazda car being driven recklessly, spinning in circles at traffic lights from Koh Kaew to Darasamut intersection. Thalang traffic officers pursued the vehicle but were initially unable to apprehend it as it sped along Chaloem Phra Kiat Rama 9 Bypass Road toward Central Junction.

“The suspects appeared intoxicated and were uncooperative, unable to communicate in English despite police using translation applications.

“One suspect was later identified as Mr George, a Nigerian national, wanted on an arrest warrant issued by the Phuket Provincial Court on August 21, 2023, for overstaying his visa and possession of Category 2 narcotics (cocaine),” the report noted.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has described the N15.6tn Lagos-Calabar Coastal highway project as wasteful and corrupt.

He equally slammed the President Bola Tinubu administration for spending N21bn on a new official residence for Vice President Kashim Shettima, calling it a misplaced priority and conduit designed to embezzle public funds.

The ex-leader disclosed this in chapter six of his new book, ‘Nigeria: Past and Future’ where he painted the portrait and characters of chief executives at both the federal and state levels.

The book was one of the two new books unveiled to mark Obasanjo’s 88th birthday last week.

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, had revealed that the 700km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway will cost N4.93bn per kilometre, stating that the contract was awarded on a counterpart-funding basis and not a Public-Private Partnership.

About N1.06tn has been released for the pilot phase, or six per cent of the project, which begins at Eko Atlantic and is expected to terminate at the Lekki Deep Sea Port.

Many prominent Nigerians, including the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar, have questioned the Federal Government’s decision to award the contract to Gilbert Chagoury’s Hitech Construction Company without competitive bidding.

Chagoury is believed to be Tinubu’s long-time business partner and friend.

Assessing the two years of Tinubu in office, Obasanjo said it appears that the game of short-changing the over 230 million Nigerians would continue because “Everything is said to be transactional and the slogan is ‘It is my turn to chop.’’’

Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, declined to react to Obasanjo’s criticism of his principal when contacted on Wednesday night.

The former President said the majority of those who have been opportune to hold leadership positions in the country as governors, presidents, ministers, commissioners even as local government chairmen are ill-prepared, satanic, self-centred and are all out to corruptly enrich themselves while the nation continues to wallow in abject poverty and condemnable underdevelopment.

Obasanjo said that many clamouring to be governors or lead the country in one form or the other are only interested in using their offices to enrich themselves and their cronies and then leave the country worse than they met it.

The former President pointed out that most office-seekers in the country would go as far as obtaining loans of billions of naira believing that paying back from the public funds after being elected won’t be a problem.

He stated, “How do you explain the situation of a chief executive, a governor, whose business was owing the banks billions of naira and millions of dollars before becoming a governor and within two years of becoming governor, without his company doing any business, he paid all that his businesses owed the banks.

“You are left to guess where the money came from. Having got away with that in the first term, he consigned to himself almost half of the state resources in the second term. He was a typical example of the goings-on at that level almost universally in the country with only a few exceptions.

“State resources are captured and appropriated to themselves with a pittance to staff and associates to close the mouths of those that could blow the whistle or raise alarm against them while in office and when they are out of office.’’

He further noted that “The ones that are criminally ridiculous are the chief executives that deceive, lie and try to cover up on the realities and truth of action and inaction on contract awards, agreements, treaties, borrowings and forward sales of national assets. Such chief executives are unfit for the job they find themselves in.

“Typical examples of waste, corruption and misplaced priority are the murky Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road on which the President had turned deaf ears to protests and the new Vice-President’s official residence built at a cost of N21bn in the time of economic hardship to showcase the administration hitting the ground running and to show the importance of the office of the Vice-President. What small minds!”

To address some of the challenges facing the country, the former President said that there is a need to interrogate the Western liberal democracy being practised and see how it could be reviewed to reflect African peculiarities.

“If the West, from where the liberal democracy started should complain about it not working well for them, we should be wise enough at this stage to interrogate, carry out introspection, internal analysis and realise that Western liberal democracy is not working for us and is not delivering apart from the shortcomings of the operators.

“We should seek democracy within African history, culture, attributes and characteristics, one that will take necessary African factors into consideration. Until we can get a better word or description for it, let us call it Afrodemocracy.

“It is from Afrodemocracy that we will draw up an African people’s constitution for any African that chooses to go the way of Afrodemocracy, which will avoid most, to all, the faults we have found in Western liberal democracy,” he suggested.

Yoruba Nation agitator, Chief Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, has filed an appeal at the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn the Court of Appeal’s ruling that nullified the N20bn damages awarded to him against the Department of State Services and the Attorney General of the Federation.

Igboho initially sued the AGF, the DSS, and the DSS Director in Oyo State, demanding N5.5bn in damages over the July 2021 raid on his Ibadan residence, during which two people were reportedly killed and 12 others arrested.

In September 2021, an Oyo State High Court ruled in his favor, awarding N20bn in damages against the AGF and the DSS, holding them liable for the invasion.

However, in August 2022, the Court of Appeal in Ibadan overturned the decision. 

Presiding judge Justice Muslim Hassan ruled that the lower court misapplied legal principles in awarding the damages, arguing that the trial judge lacked concrete evidence to quantify the losses suffered at Igboho’s residence.

He held that the case did not qualify as a human rights enforcement matter due to national security concerns and stated that no autopsy reports were provided to confirm the alleged killings during the raid.

But disastified with the appellate court judgment, Ighoho, through his lawyer, Yomi Aliyu (SAN), has filed an appeal dated  March 11, 2025 at the Supreme Court.

He argued that the Court of Appeal erred in its judgment and asks the Supreme Court to overturn the decision.

Igboho also argues that it was not his duty to produce autopsy reports for those allegedly killed, as the DSS did not deny the killings in court.

He also faulted the Appeal Court for rejecting special damages due to the absence of a valuation report, despite affidavit evidence and expert invoices detailing the losses. He maintained that the aggravated and exemplary damages assessed by the trial judge were neither irrational nor inconsistent with legal principles.

Additionally, he contended that the DSS and AGF’s response at the Court of Appeal was filed outside the stipulated timeframe, raising questions about the validity of their submissions.

The Supreme Court is now expected to rule on the appeal, potentially setting a legal precedent on government accountability and self-determination rights in Nigeria.

The Peoples Democratic Party has alleged that four members of the Edo State House of Assembly received N200m each as inducement to defect to the All Progressives Congress.

The lawmakers— Donald Okugbe (Akoko Edo Constituency II), Bright Iyamu (Orhionmwon South Constituency II), Richard Edosa (Oredo West Constituency), and Sunday Ojezele (Esan South East)—on Wednesday officially joined the APC at the party’s secretariat in Benin.

They were received by the acting Edo State APC Chairman, Jarret Tenebe, and other party leaders.

With this defection, the APC now holds 13 seats in the 24-member Assembly, while the PDP has 11. The Labour Party also lost its only lawmaker to the APC.

The PDP swiftly condemned the defections, accusing Governor Monday Okpebholo of using state funds to bribe lawmakers.

“In confirmation of the alarm raised by our party last week that Governor Monday Okpebholo was planning to buy over PDP lawmakers with N200meach, four members have now defected, pocketing the money in the process,” said Chris Nehikhare, the PDP Caretaker Committee’s Publicity Secretary.

“We frown at this wanton waste of state resources and warn that misappropriation of government funds attracts severe consequences. Okpebholo will eventually account for this reckless expenditure.”

Nehikhare also criticised the governor for prioritizing political realignment over governance, particularly at a time when insecurity is escalating in Edo State.

“While insecurity ravages communities, claiming at least 40 lives in the last two weeks, the governor is focused on political horse-trading for his survival, rather than tackling urgent security concerns,” he added.

Defending their decision to switch allegiance, the defecting lawmakers blamed internal crises within the PDP for their departure.

“A house divided against itself cannot stand,” said Richard Edosa, who spoke on behalf of the group. “We believe in the vision of Governor Monday Okpebholo and have decided to join him in achieving his plans for Edo State. We promise to work with him to build both the party and the state.”

Welcoming the lawmakers, APC acting chairman Jarret Tenebe, described their move as a major boost for the ruling party, assuring them of equal rights and privileges within the party.

“These honourable members, who bring a wealth of experience and diverse perspectives, have recognised that the APC offers the most promising path forward for Edo State and Nigeria,” Tenebe said. “They have seen the clarity of our policies, the integrity of Governor Okpebholo’s leadership, and his unwavering dedication to improving the lives of Edo people.”

Dismissing the PDP’s bribery allegations, Tenebe insisted that the lawmakers defected out of conviction, not financial incentives.

“This is not merely about increasing our numbers but strengthening our collective resolve. We value every member’s contribution and are confident that our new lawmakers will play a vital role in our journey toward success,” he added.

Tenebe then presented the lawmakers with brooms, the official symbol of the APC.

With the APC strengthening its hold on the Edo Assembly, the PDP remains hopeful that the ongoing governorship election tribunal will reverse Okpebholo’s victory.

Nehikhare reaffirmed the party’s belief that its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, won the September 21 election, vowing that the PDP would reclaim its mandate.

“We are confident that the judiciary will correct the injustice of September 21 and return the stolen mandate to the PDP,” he said.

President Bola Tinubu has resolved the leadership crisis in the Lagos State House of Assembly, backing the return of Mudashiru Obasa as Speaker, despite an earlier recommendation for his resignation.

The resolution came after a meeting between Tinubu and all 40 lawmakers at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, on Wednesday.

The President’s decision contradicts the recommendations of a panel he had set up to mediate the crisis.

The panel, led by former Osun State Governor, Chief Bisi Akande, and former Ogun State Governor, Chief Gbenga Daniel, along with the leadership of the Governance Advisory Council, had advised that Obasa should step down after being reinstated.

The PUNCH reports that the panel initially recommended that Mojisola Meranda resign as Speaker to allow for Obasa’s return, with the understanding that he would also resign shortly after, making way for a new Speaker from Lagos West to balance the state’s political structure.

On March 3, 2025, 49 days after Obasa’s impeachment, Meranda resigned and was re-elected as Deputy Speaker.

Obasa was then reinstated as Speaker in line with the agreement.

However, contrary to the deal, Obasa adjourned the Assembly indefinitely and refused to resign as expected.

Obasa had been removed on January 13, 2025, by 35 lawmakers, who accused him of high-handedness, financial misappropriation, and authoritarian leadership.

Meranda replaced him but later resigned under pressure from party leaders.

On Wednesday, The PUNCH observed that the lawmakers arrived at the Presidential Villa in Abuja in a Coaster bus around 2 pm, after which security officials ushered them into the President’s office complex.

Meranda arrived with her colleagues, while Obasa arrived separately at about 3 pm.

The meeting held behind closed doors. A Presidency official, who spoke anonymously for lack of authourisation, said Tinubu had brokered peace among the warring factions, asking members to work with Obasa to ensure stability in the Assembly and the state.

“Tinubu met the lawmakers behind closed-doors. They spoke on their grievances and the President has resolved the problems.

“With the development, Obasa will stay as Speaker. His position is no longer threatened. All the lawmakers have agreed to work with him.

“They all had a photo session with the President after the meeting. It went well,” the source said.

While some Lagos stakeholders are displeased that the original agreement was not upheld, the source assured that the President would engage all aggrieved parties to maintain unity.

“Some stakeholders are naturally displeased Obasa reneged on the agreement with the Akande panel. I’m sure the President would engage everyone to settle the matter,” the source added.

Another source close to Obasa revealed that Tinubu also directed the Speaker to withdraw his lawsuit challenging his impeachment at the Lagos State High Court.

“The President told the lawmakers to allow Obasa to work, and Obasa should also withdraw the case against Meranda and the lawmakers in court. The lawmakers have agreed to this,” the source said.

 On Tuesday, Obasa’s lawyer, Chief Fashanu Afolabi (SAN), had told The PUNCH that the Speaker did not withdraw his suit despite his reinstatement as Speaker.

He said the allegations Obasa by the lawmakers were heavy and needed to be trashed.

“Because there are some issues that are still pending within the context of notice of allegation. The case of allegation contains reasons for the impeachment which include highhandedness, fraudulent malpractices and the rest and we feel that those issues must be trashed out,” he told The PUNCH in a telephone interview on Tuesday.

Justice Yetunde Pinheiro of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja had on Monday adjourned the hearing of a suit filed by Obasa to March 17, 2025.

The wife of the late Nigerian singer, Mohbad, Omowunmi Aloba, has expressed frustration that her husband’s corpse is still in the morgue 18 months after his tragic demise.

Recalls that Mohbad died on September 12, 2023, and was buried the following day.

On September 21, 2023, his body was exhumed by police for an autopsy due to the controversy surrounding his demise.

In a lengthy post via Instagram on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Omowunmi claimed that her husband’s death has become a business, as some people are making profit from it.

She also claimed that her father-in-law, Joseph Aloba’s refusal to bury Mohbad is driven by the financial gains from his death rather than grief or the pursuit of justice.

She further called on Nigerians to appeal to her father-in-law to lay the late singer to rest.

She said, “It has been 18 months since my husband left this world. 18 months of waking up every day to a reality never asked for. 18 months of missing him with every breath I take. 18 months of carrying the weight of being both mother and father to our now 23-month-old child.

“The heavens know how much I miss him. There are no words that can truly describe the depth of this pain, the emptiness he left behind.

“To the general public, I am pleading with you, help me ask my father-in-law to bury my husband.

“There is no reason, no justification for why his body is still lying in the morgue after all this time. No reason why the man I vowed to love forever has been left in cold storage, denied the dignity of a final resting place.

“My father-in-law is not keeping him there out of love or grief. He is holding on because of the attention and money he continues to receive.

“He knows that once my husband is finally laid to rest, the public sympathy, the donations, the sudden fame he has found will disappear.

“He is dragging this on, not because he seeks justice, but because he benefits from my husband’s death.

“And he is not alone in this. There are people on social media who stand with him, who act as his spokespersons.

“These people have turned my husband’s death into a business. They profit from this tragedy. They have built platforms off my pain. They have made careers out of bullying me and my child.

“They make money from telling lies about me, from spreading malicious propaganda to discredit me. And worse, some of them even pay my father-in-law a monthly salary from what they make online.

“Please, I am pleading with you. Hear my cry. Help me. Let my husband rest. Let my child have peace. Let me grieve without this never-ending battle hanging over me. Iam begging. Please.”

Veteran Nigerian entertainer cum activist, Charles Oputa, better known as Charly Boy has slammed the National Assembly members while reacting to the sexual harassment controversy involving Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and suspended Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

Charly Boy, in a post via his Instagram page, expressed his frustration over the state of Nigeria’s leadership, criticising the political class, the Supreme Court judges and the law enforcement agencies.

Charly Boy stated that the National Assembly has the highest numbers of anyhow men without value or shame, adding that congregation of crooks, drug peddlers and sex predators are in charge of Nigeria.

He wrote, “From the Presidency, the Supreme court justices, the Law enforcement agencies to the house of rep members and Horny Senators, my people, Nigeria don scarter scarter. Reminds me of my song “1990”

“The National Assembly has the highest numbers of anyhow men without value or shame, if u like, very randdy dogs, deplorables and undistinguished.

“We can all see what’s playing out with the Senate Presidents sex scandal, an act that has followed him around as a politician. Now, we are witnessing how victims are punished and the guilty flexing all over the place. Nonsense.

“My people, globally na for Nigeria wey real criminals are in power. Congregation of crooks, drug peddlers and sex predators are in charge of Nigeria. Dia fathers.”

The Rivers State House of Assembly has refuted claims by Governor Siminalayi Fubara that he was blocked from re-presenting the 2025 Appropriation Bill at the Assembly complex.

Naija News reports that the spokesperson of the House and Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Enemi Alabo George, dismissed Fubara’s allegations, describing them as a “comedy skit” aimed at painting the Assembly in a bad light.

According to The Nation, George stated that the Assembly had formally requested the governor to present his budget following the Supreme Court’s judgment on March 3.

“We were the ones who, immediately after that judgment, appealed to the governor to bring his appropriation bill. We acted immediately because we have the interest of the state at heart and didn’t want Rivers people to suffer any harm,” George said.

Assembly Accuses Fubara Of Ignoring Requests

According to the lawmakers, despite withholding their entitlements for over a year and demolishing their chambers, the House still urged Fubara to hasten the budget presentation for the progress of the state.

“We indicated our intentions in that letter and even gave him a timeframe because of the urgency of the matter. To regularize his appointments, we also urged him during our subsequent sitting to submit the names of his nominees for the positions of commissioners and board members for screening and confirmation,” George added.

He alleged that the governor ignored their pleas and refused to accept official Assembly communications.

“We sent employees of the Assembly to deliver these resolutions to him, but as usual, they were turned back at the gate and even brutalized. We resorted to using a courier service, yet he still ignored our call,” George stated.

Lawmakers Question Fubara’s Intentions

George further questioned the governor’s sincerity, pointing out inconsistencies in his claim of being blocked from the Assembly complex.

“How can he turn around to claim that we blocked him from re-presenting his budget? This is the height of insincerity. We even need the budget to be passed because the governor has been owing us our entitlements for more than a year, and without the budget, we can’t get our entitlements,” he said.

Describing the event as a political ploy, George accused Fubara of orchestrating a media stunt to discredit the Assembly.

“The governor and his team simply and deliberately acted Wednesday’s drama with the singular motive of tarnishing the image of the Assembly. He is playing to the gallery to whip up unnecessary sentiments, but it has backfired because the truth has come out,” he added.

Lawmakers Say Fubara’s Letter Never Reached Them

The Assembly also refuted Fubara’s claim that he sent a letter to the Speaker requesting to present the budget, saying the lawmakers only saw the letter circulating on social media after Wednesday’s proceedings.

“But even the letter trending on social media was dated March 11. Does it mean that the governor purportedly sent a letter on Tuesday, God knows when, and immediately mobilized to the Assembly quarters on Wednesday morning claiming he came to present his budget?” George queried.

He insisted that legislative procedures require the governor to wait for an official acknowledgment of his letter before appearing before the Assembly.

“It is procedurally trite that after writing to the Assembly, the governor ought to wait for the letter to be acknowledged by the lawmakers, who will then invite him to appear before them and make his presentation. Governor Fubara ought to know this if he is sincere,” he said.

‘Fubara Must Follow Due Process’

The Assembly reiterated its commitment to upholding the rule of law and urged Fubara to act in the best interest of Rivers people.

“This Assembly will continue to uphold the rule of law and will remain committed to promoting the interest of Rivers State. We urge him to do the needful so that Rivers people can breathe. He is toying with the lives and livelihood of Rivers people,” George concluded.