Revelations have emerged as to why the 2026 Appropriation Bill submitted by Governor Siminalayi Fubara to the Rivers State House of Assembly has not been passed into law, one month after the lawmakers received it.
Investigations by our correspondent revealed that fresh agreements between the Martin Amaewhule-led Assembly and the governor are the major reason for the delay in passing the budget, even as little has been heard about the proposal.
Recall that Fubara presented an appropriation bill of N1.854tn, christened the “Budget of Resilience for Growth and Development,” to the Assembly for consideration and approval on July 10, 2026.
Receiving the budget from the governor, the Speaker expressed concern over the late presentation but assured that lawmakers would give the proposal the attention it deserved in the interest of the state.
The delay has raised concerns, especially as the budget was presented late due to the lingering political crisis that rocked the state.
Also, there has been little information about the budget defence or other legislative proceedings expected to allow lawmakers to scrutinise the proposal before its passage.
Investigation by our correspondent showed that some projects across the state, including the multi-billion-naira Ring Road, are either not being executed or are being carried out on a limited scale, apparently due to the lack of appropriated funds.
However, criticisms have trailed the proposed N41.4bn allocation to the state House of Assembly, with some stakeholders and residents saying the amount is too high, while a few have defended the allocation because the House requires adequate funding to carry out its functions.
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, while responding to questions from journalists during a special media chat in Port Harcourt last Tuesday, hinted at the reason for the delay, alleging that his successor, Fubara, had failed to fulfil almost all the agreements reached with the lawmakers and those he described as “the family.”
He specifically alleged that the governor had refused to fund the state House of Assembly Service Commission, among other obligations.
Wike stated, “The issue of budget, I know why you asked because you expected that once the budget is presented today, it will be passed tomorrow.
“Remember it won’t be that easy. But at the end of the day, the budget will be passed.
“This is why I tell people, yes, they have settled, but you see, do we just do it? Those things you expect them to do, but at the end of the day the budget will be passed and sent to the governor for his assent.
“I will tell you totally that the governor has failed 90 per cent of what they all agreed on.
“Take, for example, he did not release funds to the State Assembly Commission and the rest of them. Cars were not provided.
“If the governor did not want to work with us, the governor would be okay, I’m the governor, and I will join the other party, which is also very dangerous.
“Or I will stay and betray, which is also very dangerous. There is no way you can play it.
“Therefore, it’s better, and it’s good for the interest of the state to work with the family. It’s all over the world.”
It was gathered that the lawmakers, out of what they termed goodwill and interest of the state, reached some undisclosed agreements with the governor before allowing the late presentation of the appropriation bill.
Most stakeholders were said to be disappointed that the bill, which they had expected the lawmakers to expeditiously consider and pass to prevent an imminent constitutional crisis, had been delayed for over a month.
A close source in the Assembly, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said fresh agreements between Fubara and the lawmakers were responsible for the delay.
“To resolve the lingering political crisis, the governor met with the lawmakers on his 2026 appropriation bill. They had an agreement, and the deal paved the way for the lawmakers to allow the governor to present his appropriation bill.
“But the governor has not been able to fulfil the agreements. Nobody forced him to enter into the agreement, which the lawmakers know is within his capacity to fulfil. Instead of doing it once, he is doing it in piecemeal,” the source disclosed.
When asked about the components of the new agreement, the source simply said, “I don’t have details of all of them. But some of them have to do with the lawmakers’ benefits and entitlements, especially their constituency projects.
“The governor has not done anything for them since assuming office, and I think they expect him to pay most of their outstanding benefits, and he agreed to do so, but hasn’t kept to his promise.”
He insisted that the lack of mutual trust between the governor and the lawmakers, following a series of unfulfilled promises and unkept agreements, had contributed to the delay in passing the bill.
“The House of Assembly does not trust the governor because of a series of broken promises and unfulfilled agreements. So, in any new agreement, they want the governor to satisfy his own side of the bargain first. What they are asking for is legitimate.
“They are not begging for it, and nobody forced the governor to agree to it. They only want him to fulfil it now because they don’t believe he will still do it after getting the budget,” he said.
Efforts to reach the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Onwuka Nzeshi, failed, as he neither answered calls put across to his mobile nor replied to messages sent to him as of the time of filing this report.
Meanwhile, a prominent voice in the state and Convener of the Rivers Peace Initiative, Obinna Ebogidi, called on the Rivers State Executive and House of Assembly to provide clarity on the status of the 2026 Appropriation Bill and ensure its passage without further delay.
Ebogidi said the delay was becoming a concern because the budget was presented late and the Assembly leadership had earlier indicated that it would receive accelerated consideration.
Ebogidi said Rivers people deserved to know where the budget currently stood and what was responsible for the apparent slow pace of consideration.
According to him, “I think the most important thing at this point is for Rivers people to have clarity on where the 2026 budget currently stands.
He further said that, having been assured of accelerated consideration because of the late presentation, citizens would naturally expect to have seen appreciable progress in the state by now.
“So, naturally, citizens would expect to have seen appreciable movement by now. The concern is not about rushing the legislative process, but about ensuring that the process does not lose momentum, particularly because implementation time is already becoming limited,” Ebogidi stated.
The RPI convener noted that the budget delay was taking place against the backdrop of significant political realignments in the state ahead of the 2027 elections, even as he stressed that political developments should not be allowed to undermine the day-to-day administration of the state.
“We also have to appreciate the political context in which this is happening. There are significant political realignments taking place, and the governor has a relatively short period left in the life of the administration,” he said.
Ebogidi, however, said while political developments were a normal part of democratic engagement, governance must continue irrespective of the political arrangements ahead of 2027.
He said, “Those developments are part of politics and should be allowed to take their course. But irrespective of the political arrangements around 2027, the government must continue to function.”
Ebogidi noted that Rivers residents still had pressing needs which required government attention, while critical sectors of the economy and public service could not afford to be stalled because of political considerations.
“The people still have immediate needs, and critical sectors cannot be held back by the political calendar,” he said, and appealed to both the executive and legislative arms of government to communicate clearly with the people on the issues surrounding the budget and demonstrate a sense of urgency in concluding the process.
“My appeal is really for both the executive and the legislature to give Rivers people some clarity and urgency.
“If issues are delaying the process, let citizens understand them. If there are none, then the budget should move forward,” he stated.
He noted that political reconciliation and effective governance were not mutually exclusive, urging the relevant authorities to pursue both simultaneously.
According to him, the remaining months of the administration should ultimately be judged by its ability to deliver tangible development to the people rather than by the intensity of political activities ahead of 2027.
“In the end, what should define these remaining months is not the politics of 2027, but the quality of governance and the tangible things that can still be delivered to the people of Rivers State,” Ebogidi said.
He recalled the impact of the prolonged political crisis in the state, saying Rivers residents had borne the brunt of the disruption to governance and development.
“After all, it is the people who paid the greatest price in denied governance and lost development opportunities during the nearly two years of governance gridlock in the state,” he said.
Similarly, the National President of the South-South Youths Initiative, Oscar Imeabe, expressed concern over why the budget submitted by the governor a month ago was still pending in the state House of Assembly.
Imeabe said the budget was the blueprint for development, pointing out that the delay had affected project execution and implementation one way or the other.
“One month after Governor Fubara presented the 2026 budget to the Rivers State House of Assembly, the budget is still pending.
“The question Rivers people are asking is simple: Won’t this delay affect governance and the execution of projects across the state?
“Budgets are the blueprint for development. Every day of delay is a day of delayed roads, schools, hospitals, and youth programmes.
“We urge the House of Assembly to prioritise the passage of the budget so the government can continue to serve the people effectively.”
