A former presidential aide and ex-federal lawmaker, Senator Ita Enang, has clarified that the National Assembly has no role to play in terminating the state of emergency in Rivers State unless President Bola Tinubu requests an extension.

Enang, who spoke in a telephone interview with The Guardian, explained that the legislature had already discharged its constitutional duty by approving the emergency proclamation for six months as declared by the President in March.

He said, “The National Assembly has played its role by approving the state of emergency imposed on Rivers State for six months. Once that period is exhausted, the state of emergency ceases automatically. There are no legislative processes for ending it. The National Assembly’s intervention will only be required if there is need for an extension.”

The former lawmaker, who represented Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District between 2011 and 2015, stressed that the expiration of the proclamation is unaffected by the National Assembly’s recess or presence.

Naijaonpoint reports that Enang, who later served as Senior Special Assistant to former President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly Matters and Niger Delta Affairs, said, “Whether the legislature is on recess or not does not affect the automatic termination of the proclamation.”