ABUJA – Democratic governance will return to Rivers State today as President Bola Tinubu announced the end of the six-month State of Emergency, directing Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Nma Odu, and members of the State House of Assembly to resume their duties.
Tinubu, in a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday, said calm had been restored in the oil-rich state following months of political crisis that forced the Federal Government to suspend constitutional governance in March.
“It therefore gives me great pleasure to declare that the emergency in Rivers shall end with effect from midnight today,” the President said.
He explained that the decision was informed by improved security and reconciliation efforts in the state, stressing that Rivers must now return to democratic order and institutional stability.
“The Governor, His Excellency Siminalayi Fubara, the deputy governor, Her Excellency Ngozi Nma Odu, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, including the Speaker, Martins Amaewhule, will resume work in their offices from September 18,” Tinubu declared.
The emergency rule was imposed on March 18 after a fierce power struggle between the executive and the legislature triggered violent clashes in Port Harcourt and other parts of the state, threatening public safety and crippling governance. Security agencies took over strategic institutions during the period to forestall further escalation.
With peace now restored, the resumption of Governor Fubara and the state legislature is expected to end months of uncertainty and restore confidence among residents, businesses and political stakeholders.
Observers say the lifting of emergency rule will also provide an opportunity for reconciliation between rival factions and enable the state to refocus on governance, service delivery, and development.
Governor Fubara, elected in March 2023, will today return to Government House, Port Harcourt, alongside his deputy and the House of Assembly, resuming their constitutional responsibilities after half a year of suspension.
Reacting to the development, a Niger Delta activist, Ms Ann-Kio Briggs, described the announcement as expected, but raised concerns over the uncertainties surrounding Fubara’s return to full constitutional duties.
She said that Rivers people were expecting Fubara to return as governor and perform his constitutional duties without being gagged.
“Until the governor is allowed to freely carry out constitutional responsibilities, we cannot say exactly what the lifting of suspension portends,” Briggs said.
The activist said that the six months period of emergency rule was characterised by project abandonment, poor performance and undemocratic practices.
Briggs further stated that the suspension of democratic rule in Rivers inflicted incalculable losses on the people.
She said that Rivers people would demand accountability for the period the state was governed under emergency rule.
Darlington Nwauju, a factional Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers, commended Tinubu for lifting the emergency rule, and reinstating Fubara.
Nwauju however, said that the state witnessed unprecedented poor governance and mismanagement of resources during the six months period.
“Rivers was poorly managed during the past six months. The sanitary condition alone reflected the absence of governance. Workers experienced delayed salary payments,” he said.
He said that the emergency rule period had left Fubara with the huge tasks of restoring confidence, improving infrastructure, and re-establishing investor confidence.
“The state did not attract any foreign direct investment during the emergency rule period, but we must move on now that democracy is back in action,” he said.
Prof. Benjamin Okaba, the President, Ijaw National Congress, said that although the emergency rule had been lifted, the state was taken several years backwards.
He claimed that no fewer than 10,000 jobs were lost during the six months of emergency rule in the oil-rich state
According to him, suspending the governor, his deputy and the legislature handed absolute power to a sole administrator and undermined democratic principles.
Analysts say that although the lifting of emergency rule has ended uncertainties, questions remain concerning the political climate that await Fubara as he returns to office.
They suggest that sincere reconciliation between the governor and other political stakeholders will determine the pace of recovery.
