President Bola Tinubu has submitted the 2025 budget proposal for Rivers State to the National Assembly (NASS) for consideration, following the Supreme Court's nullification of the state's earlier budget. The proposed budget is N1.481 trillion. The request was communicated to both chambers of the National Assembly, citing the need for the intervention due to the ongoing emergency rule in the state and the absence of a functioning House of Assembly.

In his letter to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, Tinubu explained that N324 billion is earmarked for infrastructure development, N166 billion for the health sector (including N5 billion for free drugs), N75.6 billion for education, and N31.4 billion for agriculture. The budget aims to create approximately 6,000 jobs through these investments.

The National Assembly had previously approved Tinubu's request to impose a state of emergency in Rivers State in March 2025. An ad-hoc committee was inaugurated to oversee the administration of the emergency rule. The Senate committee is chaired by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele.

However, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned the budget submission as an unconstitutional attempt to undermine democracy in Rivers State, calling it a “creeping dictatorship”. HURIWA sees the Supreme Court and the National Assembly leadership as conspirators in an “anti-democratic script.”

Rivers women under the aegis of Rivers Women Unite for Sim (RWUS) have also lamented the state of affairs, expressing a desire to restore the state's former prosperity. They held prayers for reconciliation and peace in the state.

Legal experts and residents have also criticized the budget approval request. Courage Nsirimovu, a Human Rights and Public Interest Lawyer, deemed the President’s action illegal and in bad faith, amounting to gross misconduct. A suit challenging the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State has been transferred to Abuja.