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Former President Goodluck Jonathan has denounced President Bola Tinubu’s suspension of elected officials in Rivers State, warning that it could tarnish Nigeria’s reputation.
Speaking at the Haske Satumari Foundation Colloquium in Abuja, Jonathan expressed disappointment over the removal of elected officials, emphasizing the need to uphold democratic principles.
“These actions by key actors in the executive and legislative arms of government paint the country in a negative light,” Persecondnews quotes the former president as saying.
Jonathan’s position comes days after Tinubu declared a state of emergency in the oil-rich South-South state, suspending Gov. Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the State House of Assembly for six months.
He said the decision was taken to restore stability in the state that has been witnessing political turmoil as a result of the disagreement between the state governor and the state lawmakers.
“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,” the President declared.
The president appointed and swore in retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ette Ibas as the state’s administrator to oversee governance.
Jonathan while sharing his thoughts about the political turmoil in Rivers, said although it is not the norm for former presidents to comment on issues in the polity so as not to heat up the polity, he insisted that the image of the country and how much investments a country attracts is heavily dependent on the actions of the executive, legislature and judiciary of the country.
According to him, his comment was necessitated by persistent calls from many Nigerians to speak on the events in Rivers State as a prominent son of the Niger Delta.
He decried the situation where an individual can dictate to the judiciary what to do, saying that it makes it difficult for anyone to have faith in the judiciary.
Citing Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution, Tinubu said the emergency measure was necessary to restore peace, adding that the proclamation had been published in the Federal Gazette and forwarded to the National Assembly.
Tinubu added:“This declaration has been published in the Federal Gazette, a copy of which has 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.”
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