Pres Tinubu transmits #1.4 T Rivers budget ’25 to NASS

DDM News

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally submitted the proposed 2025 Appropriation Bill for Rivers State to the National Assembly, seeking approval of a N1.48 trillion spending plan in light of the ongoing emergency rule in the state.

In a letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, President Tinubu explained that the budget submission followed provisions under the Emergency Rule 2025 regulations, allowing federal legislative intervention in state matters due to the absence of a functional state assembly.

The budget outlines significant investments in infrastructure (N324 billion), health (N166 billion including N5 billion for free drugs), education (N75.6 billion), and agriculture (N31.4 billion), with the goal of generating 6,000 new jobs across the state.

The Senate and House of Representatives read the President’s letter during Thursday’s plenary and subsequently referred the proposal to their respective committees overseeing the emergency rule in Rivers State for further legislative scrutiny.

The emergency rule in Rivers was proclaimed and gazetted in March 2025 and ratified by the National Assembly in April. An ad-hoc committee, led by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, was formed to oversee the administration during the period.

However, the development has sparked strong criticism from civil society groups. The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) condemned the move as “unconstitutional and anti-democratic,” warning that the President’s action amounted to a “creeping dictatorship” and a violation of Nigeria’s federal structure.

HURIWA’s National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, described the transmission of a sub-national budget by the President as a “mini coup,” accusing the judiciary and legislature of collaborating in what it termed an illegal usurpation of democratic processes. The group warned that this sets a dangerous precedent for governance in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, women across Rivers State, under the banner of Rivers Women Unite for Sim (RWUS), held a prayer session at the Ecumenical Centre in Port Harcourt, calling for peace, reconciliation, and a return to democratic order. They expressed deep concern over the political instability affecting business and social life in the state.

Former FIDA Rivers chairperson, Adata Bio-Briggs, echoed the women’s appeal for genuine reconciliation and peaceful restoration of elected leadership in the state, stressing that democracy must be allowed to thrive.

The controversy surrounding the budget submission reflects growing tensions over the application of emergency rule and its implications for democratic governance at the sub-national level in Nigeria.

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