Rivers Crisis: Fresh Details Emerge On Controversial $5,000 Payments To Lawmakers

• Betara denies allegations that lawmakers received $5,000 bribes for Rivers’ emergency rule.
• He claims the payments were a yearly “Sallah Gesture,” not political inducements.
• The controversy follows rising tensions after Tinubu suspended Governor Fubara and others.

Fresh revelations have surfaced regarding the controversial $5,000 payments made to Nigerian lawmakers amid the ongoing push for a state of emergency in Rivers State.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the payments, which sparked allegations of bribery, were allegedly distributed to lawmakers as President Bola Tinubu seeks to address the escalating political crisis in the state.

In an attempt to clarify the situation, Mukhtar Aliyu Betara, Chairman of the House Committee on the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has denied that the payments were inducements to support the emergency rule. Speaking to investigative journalist Jaafar Jaafar, Betara insisted that the money was simply a “Sallah Gesture” and not a bribe.

Jaafar, in a post on 𝕏 (formerly Twitter), quoted Betara as saying, “The chairman of the House Committee on FCT, Mukhtar Aliyu Betara, has clarified to me that he only shared $5,000 to each member of his committee as a ‘Sallah Gesture’ not an inducement to support emergency rule in Rivers State. According to him, he maintains the tradition – like Santa Claus – every year. As we say in Hausa, not thigh but hind leg.”

Betara emphasized that the payments were part of his long-standing tradition of gifting committee members during celebrations, dismissing claims that they were linked to the political crisis in Rivers State.

Reports had previously suggested that large sums were distributed at Senate President Godswill Akpabio’s guest house in Maitama, Abuja, allegedly to sway lawmakers in favor of declaring a state of emergency in Rivers. However, Betara’s explanation and denials from other lawmakers have attempted to counter the allegations.

The controversy arises amid increasing political instability in Rivers State, following President Tinubu’s decision to suspend Governor Siminalayi Fubara and other key political figures. The state of emergency was declared in response to governance paralysis and growing security concerns, fueling tensions and uncertainty in the state.

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