RIVERS BUDGET: NIGER DELTA GROUP SLAMS TINUBU’S ‘RASCALLY’ MOVE

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By Oduola F.A.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s unexpected submission of the 2025 Rivers State budget to the Senate has sparked intense backlash, especially among stakeholders from the Niger Delta region.

It comes after Tinubu declared a six-month state of emergency in Rivers on March 18, 2025, effectively suspending the state’s democratic institutions.

Reacting to the development, Joseph Ambakederimo, Convener of the South-South Reawakening Group (SSRG), condemned the President’s action, describing it as a desecration of democratic values.

“This presentation of a ₦1.4 trillion budget for Rivers State by the President to the Senate is highly unconstitutional and an aberration by all democratic standards,” Ambakederimo said.

He called on the Senate to reject the budget and resist what he termed an encroachment on the federal structure and rule of law.

“We cannot continue to allow this kind of rascality to persist in our body polity,” he added.

The group emphasized that actions such as this undermine Nigeria’s democratic principles and set a dangerous precedent for executive overreach.