President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday evening declared a state of emergency in Rivers State in a nationwide broadcast.
Citing the need to restore law and order, Tinubu announced the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Mrs Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the House of Assembly of Rivers State for an initial six months.
Tinubu announced the nomination of retired Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas as the Rivers State administrator to steer the affairs of the state.
A few hours after the declaration, soldiers took over the Rivers Government House in Port Harcourt.
An insider said the governor was still in his official residence in the Government House when the troops swarmed over the premises around 9 pm.
The source stated, “Well, as I speak to you now, there are soldiers inside Government House but the governor is in his residence.”
Also, an Armoured Personnel Carrier was stationed at the entrance of the seat of power in the state overlooking the road.
A correspondent, who visited the Government House along Azikiwe Road in Port Harcourt, at about 9pm observed several Sports Utility Vehicles outside the main gate with full lights on.
It could not be ascertained if the governor was about to leave the Government House.
Tension in Rivers
In many parts of the Port Harcourt metropolis, residents and motorists were seen rushing home to their families immediately after the news of the state of emergency filtered in.
People were also seen on the streets discussing the latest issue as some residents expressed dismay over the announcement and blamed the political actors for what happened.
Tinubu justifies action
In his broadcast, the President Tinubu said he was disturbed by the unfolding events in the state, which appeared to have defied political solutions, stalled development and progress and denied the people of the state the dividends of democracy.
He said, “In the circumstance, having soberly reflected on and evaluated the political situation in Rivers State and the Governor and Deputy Governor of Rivers State having failed to make a request to me as President to issue this proclamation as required by section 305(5) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, it has become inevitably compelling for me to invoke the provision of section 305 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State with effect from today, 18th March, 2025 and I so do.
“By this declaration, the Governor of Rivers State, Mr Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Mrs Ngozi Odu and all elected members of the House of Assembly of Rivers State are hereby suspended for an initial period of six months.
“In the meantime, I hereby nominate Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (retd.) as Administrator to take charge of the affairs of the state in the interest of the good people of Rivers State. For the avoidance of doubt, this declaration does not affect the judicial arm of Rivers State, which shall continue to function in accordance with their constitutional mandate.”
The President clarified that the emergency declaration did not affect the judicial arm of Rivers State, which will continue to function in accordance with its constitutional mandate.
According to him, the Administrator will not make any new laws but is free to formulate regulations as may be found necessary to do his job, but such regulations will need to be considered and approved by the Federal Executive Council and promulgated by the President for the state.
The declaration, he added, had been published in the Federal Gazette, a copy of which had been forwarded to the National Assembly in accordance with the Constitution.
‘’It is my fervent hope that this inevitable intervention will help to restore peace and order in Rivers State by awakening all the contenders to the constitutional imperatives binding on all political players in Rivers State in particular and Nigeria as a whole,’’ the President stated.
The declaration came a few hours after Tinubu summoned an emergency meeting with his service chiefs and the Inspector-General of Police at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa following double blasts at two different oil pipelines in Rivers State.
The meeting, which began at 3:00 pm, was attended by the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, the Directors General of the State Security Service, Mr Adeola Ajayi and the National Intelligence Agency, Mohammed Mohammed.
Also in attendance were the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, and other top government officials.
