Constitutional Showdown in Rivers: PDP Insists Tinubu Cannot Suspend Elected Governor

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has reacted to the state of emergency imposed on Rivers State on Tuesday evening by President Bola Tinubu, rejecting it as a blatant disregard for the 1999 Constitution.

According to Debo Ologunagba, the PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, the President has overstepped his constitutional powers by removing the democratically elected Governor Siminalayi Fubara and imposing emergency rule on the state.

The PDP argues that Tinubu’s actions are an attempt to undermine the democratic will of the people of Rivers State.

The party claims that the President’s declaration of a state of emergency is not justified by the security situation in the state and that it’s part of a larger plot to seize control of the state.

Furthermore, the PDP emphasized that the President lacks the constitutional authority to unilaterally declare a state of emergency without the approval of the National Assembly, citing Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution.

The party has warned that Tinubu’s actions could plunge the state into chaos and disrupt national stability, and called on Nigerians to resist any attempt to undermine democracy.

Ologunagba said: “PDP and indeed, Nigerians listened with dismay the national broadcast by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in which the President, in utter violation of the 1999 Constitution pronounced an imposition of a state of emergency in Rivers State.

“The PDP outrightly rejects this attempt by the President to override the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and undermine the votes and will of the people of Rivers State by seeking to depose a democratic government and foist an undemocratic rule in the state.

“The unconstitutional declaration by President Tinubu of the suspension of the democratically elected Governor of Rivers State, Governor Siminalayi Fubara and appointment of an unelected individual, Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (rtd) to govern the state is a clear attack on our nation’s democracy, an abrogation of the votes and democratic rights of the people of Rivers State to choose their leader under the Constitution.

“The action of Mr. President therefore clearly borders on attempt at state capture. It is the climax of a well-oiled plot to forcefully take over Rivers State for which the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been bent on stoking crisis to ensure that democracy is ultimately truncated in the State.

“Nigerians are invited to note that the situation in Rivers State and the reasons adduced by the President cannot justify the declaration of a state of emergency in the State under the 1999 Constitution, rendering the declaration completely incompetent.”

He also said:“The PDP alerts that the unwarranted imposition of emergency rule in Rivers State is part of the larger vicious plot to foist a siege mentality across Nigeria, decimate opposition, impose a totalitarian one-Party State and turn the country into a fiefdom

“In any case, nothing in Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution relied upon by the President in the declaration grants him the exclusive powers to declare or execute the declaration of a state of emergency without recourse to the statutory approval of the National Assembly.

“For the avoidance of doubt, Section 305 (2) provides that “The President shall immediately after the publication, transmit copies of the Official Gazette of the Government of the Federation containing the proclamation including the details of the emergency to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, each of whom shall forthwith convene or arrange for a meeting of the House of which he is President or Speaker, as the case may be, to consider the situation and decide whether or not to pass a resolution approving the proclamation.

“Mr. President should recognize that his order to an unelected individual to forthwith take over government of Rivers State is illegal and a clear recipe for crisis, threat to the peace and stability of not only Rivers State but the entire nation.

“For emphasis, Governor Fubara was democratically elected for a tenure of four years which tenure cannot be unconstitutionally abridged.

“The PDP therefore cautions Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (rtd) to respect the Constitution and ensure that he does not take any action or step which is capable of derailing smooth democratic governance in Rivers State. Nigeria is not under a military rule where the governance of a state is by appointment by a junta.”