State of Emergency: Tinubu acted in good faith – APC chieftain

Mr Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun, has said that President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers was done in good faith.

Oyintiloye, a former lawmaker, stated this in an interview chat with journalists on Thursday in Osogbo.

The APC chieftain, while defending Tinubu’s decision, said that the emergence rule was necessary to restore peace, orderliness and good governance in Rivers.

He noted that those who were criticising the President for his action were either misinformed or trying to play politics with the lives of the Rivers citizens.

Oyintiloye said the President, relying on Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, was right by suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, and members of the state House of Assembly.

According to him, the temporary measure is not in any way to truncate democratic settings in Rivers but to stop the unhealthy political atmosphere in the state from degenerating to the state of anarchy.

Oyintiloye, who commended Tinubu’s courage in restoring Rivers to the path of peace, said that his action was a demonstration of “fatherly love” for the people of the state.

The APC chieftain noted that the bombing of two oil facilities in the state in less than 24 hours and other lawlessness activities, if not checked, could lead to economic losses and state of anarchy.

“The steps taken by the President is commendable and it clearly shows his capacity of being a responsible and responsive leader, whose love and care for the people of the Rivers State is unwavering.

“There is no doubt that the President followed to the letter, the constitutional provisions for his action.

“This bold step is to restore peace to the state, and it should not be politicised,” he said.

Oyintiloye, while going down memory lane, noted that this was not the first time a sitting President would declared state of emergency in the country.

“Since the return of democracy to Nigeria in 1999, Tinubu is the third President to invoke Section 305 of the Constitution.

“Ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo did twice in Plateau 2004 and Ekiti 2006 during his eight-year tenure.

“Former President Goodluck Jonathan also toed the same path in Adamawa, Yobe and Borno States at the peak of insurgency in 2013.

“So this can not be seen as a way of muzzling the elected government of Rivers State but as a measure to restore peace and good governance,” he said.

Oyintiloye appealed to all the relevant stakeholders in the state to cooperate with the newly appointed administrator, retired Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas, in fast tracking peace in the state.

He expressed optimism that after the six months of the emergency rule, all the political actors in the state would follow the path of reasoning in ensuring that residents enjoyed dividends of democracy. (NAN)(www.nannnews.ng)