Former National Publicity Secretary of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, has strongly criticized President Bola Tinubu’s decision to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State, describing it as unconstitutional and biased.
Speaking in an interview with News Central on Wednesday, Sara-Igbe accused President Tinubu of overstepping his constitutional powers by suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
He argued that the 1999 Constitution (as amended) does not grant the President the authority to sack an elected governor, let alone impose a sole administrator on the state.
“For Mr President to use Section 305 to declare a state of emergency where there are no problems in Rivers State is not proper.
That section does not empower Mr. President to sack an elected governor or even a councillor. He does not have that power under the 1999 Constitution,” he stated.
Sara-Igbe further alleged that the President has been biased against Governor Fubara from the start, favouring former Governor Nyesom Wike instead.
“It is very obvious right from the beginning that Mr. President is biased against the Governor of the state.
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He gave us a lopsided agreement and forced the Governor to implement it. The Governor obeyed, while Nyesom Wike refused.
The Governor withdrew all his court cases as advised by the President, but Wike refused to do the same.
That gave Wike an edge over Fubara. As if that was not enough, the Supreme Court, based on that withdrawal, gave a judgment against Fubara and the Rivers State government,” he explained.
The Niger Delta elder questioned why Tinubu did not suspend Nyesom Wike, who serves as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), but instead took action against an elected governor.
“If people are fighting—Wike and Fubara—Wike is still in Tinubu’s cabinet. Why did you not suspend him? If you truly wanted peace, you would have suspended Wike. But instead, you kept him and removed Fubara, who was elected by the people,” Sara-Igbe said.
He also accused the Federal Government of orchestrating a plan to justify the state of emergency by deploying heavy security forces during Wike’s recent visit to Rivers State.
“Last week, Wike came to Rivers State with the army, police, navy, air force, and all security apparatus, hoping to provoke a reaction that would justify declaring a state of emergency.
That plan failed. Now, they just woke up and decided to declare it anyway,” he claimed.
Sara-Igbe further alleged that the appointment of a sole administrator in Rivers State was another clear sign of favouritism towards Wike, stating that the appointee is a known ally of the former governor.
“Everyone knows that the person appointed as a sole administrator has been seen in multiple pictures with Wike. This move is nothing but a plan to hand over Rivers State to Wike,” he concluded.
The declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State has sparked widespread reactions across the country, with many questioning the constitutional legality of Tinubu’s actions and the future of governance in the state.
