President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Wednesday officially announced the end of the six-month state of emergency in Rivers State, declaring that democratic governance would resume with immediate effect.
In a State House statement issued on Wednesday, Tinubu recalled that the state of emergency was first proclaimed on March 18, 2025, following what he described as a “total paralysis of governance” in the oil-rich state.
“There was a total paralysis of governance in Rivers State, which had led to the Governor of Rivers State and the House of Assembly being unable to work together. Critical economic assets of the state, including oil pipelines, were being vandalised,” the President said.
He explained that the crisis in the state legislature had deepened the stalemate, with four members backing Governor Siminalayi Fubara and 27 members supporting Speaker Martins Amaewhule.
“As a result, the Governor could not present any Appropriation Bill to the House to enable him to access funds to run Rivers State’s affairs. That serious constitutional impasse brought governance in the state to a standstill,” Tinubu stated.
The President noted that despite interventions by his office and other well-meaning Nigerians, both factions refused to shift ground. The Supreme Court, he added, had also ruled that there was effectively “no government” in Rivers State.
This, Tinubu said, left him with no option but to invoke his constitutional powers under Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to declare a state of emergency and suspend the governor, deputy governor, and members of the House of Assembly for six months.
“It therefore became painfully inevitable that to arrest the drift towards anarchy in Rivers State, I was obligated to proclaim the state of emergency,” he explained.
The President expressed gratitude to the National Assembly for approving the proclamation, and to traditional rulers and Rivers people for their support. He also acknowledged dissenting voices who challenged the legality of the measure in court.
“That is the way it should be in a democratic setting. The power to declare a state of emergency is an inbuilt constitutional tool to address situations of actual or threatened breakdown of public order and public safety, which require extraordinary measures to return the State to peace, order and security,” Tinubu said.
The President stressed that the executive and legislature must always work harmoniously for the benefit of the people.
“The people who voted us into power expect to reap the fruits of democracy. However, that expectation will remain unrealizable in an atmosphere of violence, anarchy, and insecurity borne by misguided political activism and Machiavellian manipulations among stakeholders,” he warned.
Tinubu said intelligence reports indicated that stakeholders in Rivers were now ready to embrace peace and restore normal democratic governance.
“This is undoubtedly a welcome development for me and a remarkable achievement for us. I therefore do not see why the state of emergency should exist a day longer than the six months I had pronounced at the beginning of it,” he stated.
With the emergency lifted, Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Nma Odu, Speaker Martins Amaewhule, and all members of the Rivers State House of Assembly are to resume duties from Thursday, September 18, 2025.
President Tinubu concluded by urging leaders across Nigeria to draw lessons from the crisis.
“I take this opportunity to remind the Governors and the Houses of Assembly of all the States of our country to continue to appreciate that it is only in an atmosphere of peace, order, and good government that we can deliver the dividends of democracy to our people. I implore all of you to let this realisation drive your actions at all times.”
“Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” he declared.
