Wale Igbintade 

Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and King’s Counsel (KC), Professor Fidelis Oditah, has raised serious concerns over the court order directing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to halt federal allocations to Rivers State, saying that the judiciary is crumbling under political pressure.
 Speaking on ARISE NEWS Channel, Oditah raised the alarm over the constitutional and judicial implications of the ongoing power struggle between Governor Sim Fubara and former Governor Nyesom Wike, now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
 Oditah emphasised that the crisis extended beyond politics—it challenges the very foundation of Nigeria’s democracy.
 “This isn’t just a political feud,” he stated. “It’s about who holds constitutional authority in Rivers State.”
At the heart of the dispute is the alleged defection of lawmakers from the state’s House of Assembly.
According to Section 109(1)(g) of Nigeria’s Constitution, legislators automatically lose their seats upon switching party allegiance.
However, Oditah dismissed claims that the lawmakers needed to follow a formal process to finalise their defection. 
“It’s like resignation—it’s immediate and self-executing,” he said.
He went further, likening defection to lunacy. “If you are a lunatic, you are mad. There is no process of lunacy—it is what it is.”
He argued that once a lawmaker declares defection, the legal consequences should follow automatically. “There is nothing to interpret,” he said.
Oditah criticised a recent Supreme Court judgment that directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to halt federal allocations to Rivers State over concerns about the legitimacy of the House of Assembly. 
He condemned the move, warning that it undermines the principles of federalism.
“Rivers State is not just about Governor Fubara or Minister Wike—it is a federating unit entitled to federal allocations,” Oditah SAID. “Halting these funds harms the people of Rivers, not the politicians.”
Drawing historical parallel, he referenced the 2004 Supreme Court ruling that barred President Obasanjo from withholding local government funds from Lagos State. 
“The judge in this case simply did not understand federalism,” he said.
Turning his attention to the judiciary, Oditah suggested that certain judges have been manipulated by political figures.
“As soon as this crisis began, we all knew Wike was going to procure a judgment,” he added.
“He never loses cases, no matter the legal issues. That’s unusual.”
Oditah also criticised the judiciary’s declining reputation, arguing that Nigerian courts were once revered but have now been compromised by political and financial influence.
“It’s hard to tell where judicial incompetence ends and corruption begins,” he said. 
“Some decisions have been so indefensible that you cannot attribute them to incompetence—they are simply corrupt.”
Oditah painted a grim picture of Nigeria’s institutional decay. 
Comparing the situation to the January 6th insurrection in the United States, he noted that while American institutions withstood the crisis, Nigeria’s are faltering due to political interference.
“If unchecked, this crisis could push democracy to the brink,” he cautioned.

“And when that happens, regret will come too late.”

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