Tinubu is using emergency rule to scare Governors who may not support his second term re+election bid—-Rotmi Amaechi

Former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, has again criticized President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of emergency rule in Rivers State, describing it as a politically motivated move aimed at intimidating governors who may not support his re-election bid.

On March 18, President Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State, citing political unrest and attacks on oil facilities as justification.

As a result, Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and all members of the state House of Assembly were suspended for six months.

The president also appointed Ibok-Ete Ibas as the sole administrator of the state.

The decision has been met with widespread opposition, including from civil society groups and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), who argue that the move is unconstitutional.

Speaking in an interview with DW Africa on Friday, Amaechi strongly condemned the president’s actions, stating that the emergency rule was an attempt to instill fear in state governors who might not align with Tinubu’s political ambitions.

“It is between the president and the FCT minister. The president wants a power grab. They want to frighten governors who may not support them in 2027. So, there is a rumour everywhere that if you are not careful, the president will remove you,” Amaechi said.

He questioned the justification for the emergency rule, pointing out that insecurity exists in other parts of the country without similar actions being taken.

“If the president said it is because of insecurity, because they blew the pipeline, what about part of the country where there is insecurity? Is the president saying they should impose emergency rule on him too? They can’t because he is a democratically elected president. Nobody can impose an emergency rule on him because there is serious insecurity in the north-east, north-west — even in south-east and south-west,” he argued.

Amaechi emphasized that security is the responsibility of the federal government, not the state governor, and insisted that Fubara was being unfairly punished.

“Rivers governor has no security responsibility; it rests squarely on the president. So why punish a man who did not commit an offence?

“The president acted outside the Constitution. Section 188 states how a governor can leave office, either by death, resignation, or impeachment. It didn’t say that one day you wake up and a man called the president of Nigeria will throw you out of office, which makes democracy unstable,” he added.

The former governor urged Rivers residents to resist Tinubu’s actions through democratic protests, calling on them to stand against what he described as an erosion of democracy.

Commenting on the ongoing political feud between Fubara and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, Amaechi dismissed the conflict as a struggle for financial control.

“The fight between the current governor of Rivers State and the FCT minister is about sharing money. If not, what is the quarrel? Nigerians don’t dislike corruption anymore. I’ve not seen anybody on the street querying what the problem is. Can both of them speak to the public and tell us what the problem is?” he asked.

Amaechi further lamented the state of governance in Rivers, arguing that the emergency rule had effectively placed the state under military rule.

“We are now denied democracy. Rivers State is the only state in the country currently not enjoying democracy. They have imposed military rule on us,” he concluded.