President Bola Tinubu administered the oath of office to Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd), the sole administrator of Rivers State, at the presidential Villa in Abuja.
The brief ceremony yesterday was witnessed by the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, the Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), and the Principal Secretary to the President, Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola.
Recall that President Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State on Tuesday, March 18, to address the protracted political logjam between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the Rivers State House of Assembly members, even after the Supreme Court’s pronouncement.
In proclaiming the six-month State of Emergency, President Tinubu said the state’s security situation and political tension necessitated his intervention to forestall a total breakdown of law and order.
Speaking after taking the oath of office on what would be his immediate step to take with a lot of expectations from Nigerians, he said:
“First, we know the circumstances that led to where we are here. Mr. President made it clear in his broadcast that the main issue is maintaining law and order in the state.
“I think for any meaningful activities to take place in Rivers State that is the utmost task that I have to work with all other stakeholders to ensure that we bring peace, order and security and stability to the people and government of River State and Nigeria.”
Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, born September 27, 1960, has a rich experience serving the nation.
He was commissioned as a sub-lieutenant in the Nigerian Navy in 1983 and held various command positions until President Muhammadu Buhari appointed him Chief of Naval Staff in August 2015. He had the position until 2021.
After Vice-admiral Ibas retired from service, President Buhari appointed him the Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana. He served between 2021 and 2023.
*President acted timely to avoid collapse of the state, says AGF Fagbemi
Meanwhile, the federal government said the allocation for Rivers State would be released to the Administrator, Ibas, if he requested it.
The government also said President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State was timely and meant to avert an implosion.
Fagbemi also disclosed that Nyesom Wike, the former governor of Rivers State and Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), had no role in the political crisis in Rivers State that culminated in the declaration of a state of emergency.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, stated this while briefing State House correspondents at the presidential Villa, Abuja.
*‘FG to release Rivers allocation to administrator’
While fielding questions on whether the federal government would release the allocation from the federation account to the state given the latest development, the minister said if the administrator requests it, it will be released to him.
“And to me, it will be for the release of that fund because the extraordinary event has brought them out of the normal situation.”
He justified the president’s decision to declare a state of emergency and disagreed with some quarters’ claims that the President’s decision was hasty.
He said, “Let me start on a note of how we got to where we are today. How did it all start? That is about the genesis. We all know how we got here. Since 2023, I think towards the end of 2023, things have not been going well to the extent that the governor took the law into his hands and demolished, and brought down the House of Assembly.
“Don’t forget the role of the House of Assembly. They are the lawmakers. They are to consider the budget. They are to pass a budget. They are also to be approached in matters of appointment of commissioners for ratification and all other things.
“They are to do oversight functions. So since that happened, things have not been the same in a community of 32 you expect that at least 15 or 16 will be there to do the job.
“The governor, as I said, and it is no longer news, about three or four members constituted them to the House of Assembly, gave them preferential treatment, and moved them to the government house to perform legislative functions. These situations got to the court.
“There were about 10, 15, 16 cases, and at the end of the day, the Supreme Court came out and made very profound findings of breaches of the Constitution, mainly against the governor. You see, you rise or fall based on what you took to court and what decision the court is making.
“The court came to the decision that the governor had long anticipated, wrongly, that he might be impeached, and because of that, he knew that the House of Assembly was a critical structure, or yes, organ to do that, brought down the House of Assembly. Fourteen months after that, as of yesterday, it was 14 months, there was no effort to rebuild the House of Assembly.
“The government stands on a tripod. The executive, the legislature, and the judiciary have made the functioning of government impossible. It is not enough for the legislative or executive to say, “We are spending money. Even the money you want to pay must have been appropriated by the House of Assembly.
“These are some of the findings that the Supreme Court made. And at the end of the day, the Supreme Court said, or came to a decision, that the governor’s behaviour was like a despot and that as the situation was, there was no government in Rivers.
“If there was no government in Rivers, what else are we looking for? I’m so sorry for bringing this issue to the Bible. They asked Jesus Christ, are You the Son of God? And he said, yes. Then others chorused, what further evidence do we need from this man?
“So, the stage is set, but no action was taken immediately in the expectation or hope that good sense will prevail, the governor will create an enabling environment, and that the House of Assembly too would be reasonable enough to ensure that the people of Rivers got a return for their voting of both members of the House of Assembly and the governor and other elected officials to Enjoy dividends of democracy.
“We have about two years into the administration in the state. When do you think he (President Tinubu) should have come in? Is it when everything has been destroyed? I don’t think so.
“I think the President has acted timeously. He has given all the parties involved the opportunity to make amends. Before then, he had to assemble them; he had tried to mediate,” he stated.
*AGF Fagbemi absolves Wike of complicity
Also, when asked why the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, who is said to be one of the protagonists in the Rivers crisis, was affected by the President’s action, the AGF absolved Wike of any wrongdoing.
He said, “There are occasions when, especially when it comes to national issues, we must come out plainly. And sincerely, where do you put the Minister of FCT in this case? Was he the one who asked for the demolition of the House of Assembly?
“Was he the one who said the governor should not present his budget to the House of Assembly? Was he the one who advised the governor not to go through the House of Assembly to ratify the commissioner nominees?
“I don’t know because if you want to look at a case, you look at the facts presented; the Supreme Court made these critical findings these critical findings. FCT minister did not feature, whatever the situation, assuming he featured, he would have featured, maybe on the legislator’s side.
“But what you have here is let everybody go home for the first six months, so I don’t see his hand here in what we have that judgment of Supreme Court; I will encourage us to read that judgment. There were about 11 or 12 findings against the governor.
“What sentiment are we bringing to bear in this matter? There isn’t any sentiment. If the National Assembly feels that the President has not done well, then you won’t have the two-thirds majority required to validate his action.
“Certainly, you know it’s like a situation in which the veto usually is on the side of Mr President when a bill is presented. But the converse is the same here: It is the President who is initiating a move. I want to declare a state of emergency.
“He has to make that move. He made that clear in his speech and broadcast yesterday that I’ve made this decision and referred the matter to the National Assembly. It is for the National Assembly to say now we veto. That is to say, we don’t give you approval.
“And since the National Assembly is still in session, we expect that within 48 hours, something will come out for it. So if whoever has any misgiving, any concern, I will say, should channel it to the National Assembly to say, don’t give the required two-thirds approval, otherwise, we should all, as I said, continue to put up our patriotism cap.”
Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State on Tuesday, suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the Rivers State House of Assembly for an initial period of six months.
In a national broadcast, Tinubu cited prolonged political instability, constitutional breaches, and security threats as reasons for the extraordinary measure.
The crisis, which had paralysed governance in the oil-rich state, stems from a power struggle between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Wike, now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
As part of the directive, the President also appointed Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.) as the sole Administrator to oversee the state’s affairs until normalcy is restored. Ibas served as Chief of Naval Staff from 2015 to 2021 under former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Tinubu announced, “In the circumstance, having soberly reflected on and evaluated the political situation in Rivers State the Governor and Deputy Governor of Rivers State has failed to request me as President to issue this proclamation as required by section 305(5) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, it has become inevitably compelling for me to invoke the provision of section 305 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State with effect from today, March 18, 2025 and I so do.
“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.
“In the meantime, I hereby nominate Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (retd.) as Administrator to take charge of the affairs of the state in the interest of the good people of Rivers State. For the avoidance of doubt, this declaration does not affect the judicial arm of Rivers State, which shall continue to function by their constitutional mandate.”
*Fubara tele-guided militants to blow up pipelines – AGF
Also, the Minister of Justice, Fagbemi yesterday alleged that Governor Fubara tele-guided militants to blow up pipelines in the state.
The AGF made the accusation while rationalizing President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency following the protracted political crisis in the state.
He said if the governor was not culpable, he did not also do anything to dissuade the militants from taking action against the critical national infrastructure.
He said, “We are in a democracy. So know then, there were what I will call telegraphing of the militants, I will say, by the governor. And the reason I said so was when he beckoned to them that, oh, he will let them know when it was time to act to the militant, let us say it was wrong.
“Did he come out to disown them? The answer is no. And a week after, they swung into action, you see or witness vandalisation of oil pipelines.
“Don’t also forget that before now, that is when this government came into office. Nigeria was producing about 900,000, barrels of oil a day with the efforts and all the ingenuity that the President had he ensured that the production rose to about 1.5 million barrels per day. That’s about 45 of something increase.
“Governors were smiling home at the end of the month with about 60 percent increase in their take home to their various governors. Then somebody rose or encouraged or became inactive when he was supposed to act. There was not a word dissuading the threat. The militant who issued this threat
“In today, Nigeria, maybe with the efforts of the mister president, agric will come in. But today, we still rely largely on oil for anyone to touch these pipelines is not only the enemy of Rivers. Is the enemy of Nigeria.
“All Nigerians, all the 36 states share in what comes in from the production of this oil. I believe that the decision of mister president is anchored on the decision of the court, Supreme Court.
“The second one is the inability of those involved, both the House of Assembly and the governor, from being able to, create an enabling environment for the people of Rivers to enjoy the dividends of democracy.
Then the third in the series is about the security situation in that place. You know, if he had waited maybe a day longer, only God knows what would have followed. And as a result of that, he came out to say, I am not only the head of state. I’m Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces he declared a state of emergency.
“Let us say it was wrong. Did he come out to disown them? The answer is no. And a week after, they swung into action, you see or witness vandalisation of oil pipelines.”
Noting that the nation almost totally relies on oil, he said that anyone to touches the pipeline, is not only an enemy of Rivers but Nigeria.
He said that the judgment of the Supreme Court was the base upon which Tinubu imposed the state of emergency in Rivers State to protect the critical infrastructure in the state.
The AGF observed that the governor and the members of the state house of assembly had to be suspended because they had failed to ensure a conducive atmosphere for governance in the state.
He pushed back on criticisms that the President’s action was hasty, noting that people were living in fear while others were dying.
He said both the Governor and his deputy were suspended because it was an extraordinary situation.
He faulted the argument in some quarters that the Supreme Court in previous judgement on the declaration of State of emergency in states, stressing that situations and events were different.
The AGF said the ball is now in the court of the National Assembly which he said could reverse the suspensions by denying it the two-thirds majority to ratify the action.
He also said that the declaration of a State of emergency in Rivers State was a warning signal to other states, giving the impression that the government would invoke stricter sanctions.
According to him, “The second one is about removing the governor, removing the deputy governor. You see, you decide each case on its peculiar facts and circumstances. Who are the people involved? Who are the parties involved in this saga?
“They are the governor, members of the House of Assembly. So who else should have been affected? I’ve heard this funny argument. I’m sorry for saying it. It’s funny because it doesn’t make any sense to me.
“Oh, that the, the President should have just gone there to secure the pipelines and then come back when some people are there encouraging vandals to come in. The action of the President is like, you know what happened is the effect of a fundamental cause, and you cannot be treating the effect to cure the cause. What was the cause? The governor and members of the House of Assembly.
“So you have to behave responsibly, and you must have the gut. If it happens again, I will encourage Mister President to do the same, maybe this time with even greater vigour and vitality. So, the question of separating or treating or giving preferential treatment to anybody does not arise. You give preferential treatment to anybody. You are giving preferential treatment to illegality. Just call a spade a spade.
“This is where I believe that we should put up our patriotism cap. It shouldn’t be about the individual. It should not be about anybody. It should be about the entity called Nigeria. But in this case, Rivers State. So it is River State’s turn today.
“It can be anybody’s turn tomorrow. Let the signal be signed for those who want to foment trouble, who want to make the practice of democracy and enjoyment of dividends of democracy a mirage, to think twice.
“So I answered the question by saying, I return the resounding no to the quest that the governor and deputy governor should have been spared, or the members of the House of Assembly, they were all in it.”
*NLC, TUC describe state of emergency declared in Rivers as assault on democracy
Also yesterday, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) of Nigeria condemned the recent declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State and the suspension of the elected officers.
The two labour centres said the action of the President blatantly violated the provisions of Part II, Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and constituted an overreach of executive power.
Consequently, they demanded the immediate reversal of what they described as an “unconstitutional state of emergency” in the interest of democracy, economic stability, and the welfare of Nigerian workers.
A statement issued by the NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero and his TUC counterpart, Comrade Festus Osifo, warned that Nigeria’s democracy must not be sacrificed on the altar of political expediency.
The statement partly read, “The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) unequivocally condemn Mr. President’s hasty and unconstitutional declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State.
“This action blatantly violates the provisions of Part II, Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and constitutes an overreach of executive power. The purported suspension or removal of the Governor, Deputy Governor, and the State House of Assembly is not only unlawful but a direct assault on democracy.
“It sets a dangerous precedent, eroding constitutional governance and threatening the autonomy of subnational governments. No democratic society can thrive where elected leaders are arbitrarily removed at the whims of the President. This reckless move should deeply concern every reasonable governor and citizen who believes in the rule of law.
“We, therefore, call on Mr. President to revoke this unconstitutional declaration in compliance with Section 305(6) of the Constitution, which clearly outlines the legal process for declaring and sustaining a state of emergency.”
They contended that the President, as the custodian of the nation’s executive powers, must exercise restraint, respect constitutional limits, and act in a manner that inspires national confidence rather than suspicion.
They said any decision that jeopardises national security, economic stability, and democratic governance must be reconsidered.
According to the statement, “Nigeria has suffered the painful consequences of political overreach in the past, and we cannot afford to repeat such mistakes.
“Beyond the political and legal implications, this unjustified state of emergency will have severe socio-economic repercussions on workers and the masses. It will disrupt economic activities, forcing businesses to shut down or scale back operations;
“Lead to job losses, wage cuts, and economic hardship for thousands of workers in both the formal and informal sectors. Create an atmosphere of uncertainty, discouraging investment and slowing economic growth in Rivers State and beyond.
“Expose citizens to security risks, as history has shown that politically motivated states of emergency often escalate rather than resolve crises.
“Accordingly, the Labour movement will not remain silent while the livelihoods of workers and the well-being of ordinary Nigerians are threatened by political machinations.
“Given his storied background in political struggle, we urge Mr. President not to betray his democratic credentials by engaging in actions reminiscent of military-era authoritarianism. Leadership demands wisdom, restraint, and an unwavering commitment to democratic principles.
“We demand the immediate reversal of this unconstitutional state of emergency in the interest of democracy, economic stability, and the welfare of Nigerian workers. Nigeria’s democracy must not be sacrificed on the altar of political expediency.”
