Prominent Rivers State indigenes, including former governor Celestine Omehia and ex-PDP National Chairman Uche Secondus, have urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to reinstate suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the State House of Assembly.

The Rivers stakeholders urged the President to lift what they described as the ‘imposed state of emergency’ on Rivers State.

They also petitioned Tinubu over the planned conduct of local government elections in the state, warning that proceeding under the current arrangement would amount to a brazen flouting of Nigeria’s Constitution.

They cautioned that allowing the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), as currently constituted under Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), to proceed with the August 30 elections could undermine democratic integrity.

A Threat to Federalism and Rule of Law

In their open letter titled “Rivers LG Election: A Serious Threat To Democracy and Repeated Violations of the Constitution, Urgent Warning From Major Stakeholders”, the signatories, including Atedo Peterside, Chief Abiye Sekibo, Senator Lee Maeba, Dr Dakuku Peterside, Senator Andrew Uchendu, and Engr Tele Ikuru, described the planned polls as “nothing short of an existential assault on our democracy.”

They accused the Federal Government of orchestrating the elections through “a Sole Administrator with no constitutional mandate,” adding that the move threatens Nigeria’s federal system, the rule of law, and peace in the state.

The stakeholders argued that: “RSIEC is not legally constituted as required by Sections 2, 3, 5, and 12 of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission Law, 2018, which vests appointment powers in an elected governor confirmed by the State Assembly.

“The mandatory 90-day election notice stipulated in Section 20 of the RSIEC Law was ignored, with the August 30 poll date announced without proper nomination or polling timetables, mirroring procedural lapses that led to the annulment of the 2024 elections by the Supreme Court.

“Court cases challenging the legitimacy of the Sole Administrator and RSIEC are still pending at the Supreme Court and Federal High Court, yet preparations continue in defiance of the sub judice rule.

“Rivers is under a constitutional crisis due to the suspension of its executive and legislative arms, making local polls untenable under the same logic that prevents INEC from holding by-elections in such conditions.

“Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution vests local council election authority exclusively in state governments, rendering any federally appointed administrator’s actions ultra vires and void.”

Appeal for National and International Intervention

The letter condemned what it called a blatant usurpation of state autonomy and called for urgent intervention by President Tinubu, the National Assembly, the Judiciary, civil society, the media, and the international community.

“Rivers State stands at a crossroads: surrender to impunity or uphold the Constitution and the will of the people. The choice is ours, and the stakes could not be higher,” the stakeholders warned.

Naijaonpoint reports that other signatories to the letter include Prince Fafaa Dan Princewill, Engr Dagogo Jack, Randolph Iwo Brown, Dr Austin Tam-George, Donu Kogbara, Dr Sokonte Davies, Dr Glory Emeh, George Feyii, Hon Asita, Surv Sam Agwor, and Ann-Kio Briggs.