UPDATED: Tinubu Lifts Rivers Emergency Rule, Restores Fubara, Others

… Not Acting Would Have Been Colossal Failure, Says President

President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday announced the end of the six-month state of emergency imposed on Rivers State and the restoration of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Nma Odu, and the State House of Assembly to office effective from Thursday.

Tinubu said the proclamation, which came into effect on March 18, 2025, had achieved its objectives of halting a “total paralysis of governance” and paving the way for reconciliation between the executive and legislature in the state.

“It therefore gives me great pleasure to declare that the emergency in Rivers State of Nigeria shall end with effect from midnight today,” the president said.

“The Governor, His Excellency Siminalayi Fubara; the deputy governor, Her Excellency Ngozi Nma Odu; and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly and the speaker, Martins Amaewhule, will resume work in their offices from 18 September 2025.”

Tinubu explained that intelligence reports suggested a “groundswell of a new spirit of understanding, a robust readiness, and potent enthusiasm” among stakeholders in Rivers for an immediate return to democratic governance.

“This is undoubtedly a welcome development for me and a remarkable achievement for us. I therefore do not see why the state of emergency should exist a day longer than the six months I had pronounced at the beginning of it,” he said.

The president used the opportunity to caution governors and legislators across the country against dangerous politics and urged them to prioritise peace and collaboration.

“It is only in an atmosphere of peace, order, and good government that we can deliver the dividends of democracy to our people,” he stated.

Why Tinubu Declared Emergency Rule

Tinubu had invoked Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution to impose the measure following a prolonged political crisis in Rivers State that stemmed from a rift between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now the FCT Minister.

At the time, Tinubu cited a bitter rift between the executive and legislature that had made it impossible for the governor to present an appropriation bill, vandalism of oil infrastructure, and deep divisions within the House of Assembly.

“The summary of it for context is that there was a total paralysis of governance in Rivers State, which had led to the Governor of Rivers State and the House of Assembly being unable to work together,” he said on Wednesday.

Tinubu recalled that four lawmakers backed Governor Fubara, while 27 opposed him and supported Speaker Martins Amaewhule, a split that left the state in deadlock.

“Even the Supreme Court, in one of its judgments in a series of cases filed by the executive and the legislative arms of Rivers State against each other, held that there was no government in Rivers State,” Tinubu said.

He maintained that his intervention was necessary to avert a drift towards anarchy. “It would have been a colossal failure on my part as president not to have made that proclamation,” he said.

Tinubu said that although over 40 cases challenging the proclamation were filed in courts across Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Yenagoa, his action was constitutional and helped stabilise the state.

“That is the way it should be in a democratic setting. Some cases are still pending in the courts as of today. But what needs to be said is that the power to declare a state of emergency is an inbuilt constitutional tool to address situations of actual or threatened breakdown of public order and public safety, which require extraordinary measures to return the state to peace, order and security.

“Considered objectively, we had reached that situation of total breakdown of public order and public safety in Rivers State, as shown in the judgment of the Supreme Court on the disputes between the executive and the legislative arm of Rivers State. It would have been a colossal failure on my part as president not to have made that proclamation.

“As a stakeholder in democratic governance, I believe that the need for a harmonious existence and relationship between the executive and the legislature is key to a successful government, whether at the state or national level. The people who voted us into power expect to reap the fruits of democracy. However, that expectation will remain unrealisable in an atmosphere of violence, anarchy, and insecurity borne by misguided political activism and Machiavellian manipulations among the stakeholders.

“I am happy today that, from the intelligence available to me, there is a groundswell of a new spirit of understanding, a robust readiness, and potent enthusiasm on the part of all the stakeholders in Rivers State for an immediate return to democratic governance. This is undoubtedly a welcome development for me and a remarkable achievement for us. I therefore do not see why the state of emergency should exist a day longer than the six months I had pronounced at the beginning of it,” Tinubu added.

He thanked the National Assembly, traditional rulers, and the people of Rivers for their support during the emergency period, while acknowledging dissenting voices as “the way it should be in a democratic setting”.