A former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufa’i, has condemned the state of emergency imposed on Rivers State by President Bola Tinubu, describing the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu and House of Assembly members for six months as unconstitutional. In a statement he posted on his X handle, El-Rufa’i noted that the Nigerian Constitution does not support the sacking or suspension of an elected state governor by the President under an emergency rule, stating that such is dangerous to the nation’s democratic system.
Rather than suspending the executive and legislative arm of Rivers State, El-Rufa’i said a state of emergency could surely have been proclaimed to grant the relevant security agencies the extraordinary powers and necessary resources to enable them to address any security problem in the state. He insisted that extending the provisions of such an emergency regime to include the dismantling of democratic structures is a wanton aggression against democratic tenets and the rule of law.
“There are things that are so clearly wrong that the justifications summoned in their defence fall flat. The decision of Mr. President to suspend the elected officials of the Rivers State Government is one of those. Our country’s Constitution does not support it precisely because it is dangerous to our system of democratic federalism for an elected president to assume and exercise powers to suspend elected officials at the State level. The responsibilities of a president are heavy and extensive, but they are constrained by the Constitution and the law and certainly do not include firing persons who were elected.
“The security issues cited in the President’s speech surely deserve the most serious attention and sustained efforts to contain the threats and preserve vital national infrastructure. That is a duty that we ought to vigorously support the security agencies to successfully discharge. “The Supreme Court has conclusively declared the suspension of elected officials unlawful in the Dariye vs. Attorney General of the Federation. “It is my view that Mr. President should review this decision and return to the path of constitutionalism and the rule of law. As an opposition figure, Senator Bola Tinubu had made his voice heard against the decision of then President Goodluck Jonathan to declare a state of emergency in the North-East, even when that decision did not extend to the suspension of elected officials and institutions. A similar reconsideration is warranted in this case to contain the damage done to the people of Rivers State and restore the Federal Government to compliance with the Constitution.
“Let us not keep silent while the slippery slope of replicating the events of emergency rule in the old Western Region in 1962 unfolds before our very eyes. I appeal to all patriots and voices of reason to join in calling an end to this gross violation of the Constitution and disrespect for the rule of law”.
