The Federal Government has defended President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State, calling it a timely move aimed at preventing a potential crisis in the state.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, made the statement on Wednesday, March 19, while addressing State House correspondents at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja.
“We are about two years into the administration in the state, Now, when do you think the President should have intervened? Should it have been when everything had been destroyed? I don’t think so,” Fagbemi said.
He added, “I believe the President has acted decisively. He has given all the parties involved ample opportunity to resolve the issues. Before this, he had tried to mediate and bring them together.”
On Tuesday, March 18, Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State, suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the Rivers State House of Assembly for an initial six-month period.
In a national broadcast, Tinubu cited prolonged political instability, constitutional breaches, and security concerns as the driving factors behind the declaration.
The crisis, which has brought governance in the oil-rich state to a standstill, stems from a long-running power struggle between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
As part of the emergency measures, the President also appointed Vice Admiral Ibok-Étè Ibas (retd.) as the sole administrator of Rivers State. Ibas, who served as Chief of Naval Staff from 2015 to 2021 under former President Muhammadu Buhari, is tasked with overseeing the state’s affairs until normalcy is restored.
Tinubu explained, “Having carefully assessed the political situation in Rivers State, and considering that the governor and deputy governor did not request the proclamation as required by section 305(5) of the 1999 Constitution, I was left with no choice but to invoke section 305 of the Constitution to declare a state of emergency in the state with effect from March 18, 2025.”
The President also assured that the judiciary in Rivers State would remain unaffected by the emergency, continuing to function as per its constitutional mandate.
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