The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, recently set up 18-member committee to oversee the activities of the Rivers State Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd). The retired naval officer was appointed the Sole Administrator of Rivers State following President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of emergency rule in the troubled state on March 18, 2025. The emergency rule led to the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Mrs. Ngozi Odu, and all the members of the State House of Assembly for six months in the first instance by President Bola Tinubu.
The oversight committee is led by Senate Leader Senator Opeyemi Bamidele and the Deputy Minority Whip, Senator Rufai Hanga. According to the Senate President, the committee was created to ensure transparency and accountability in the governance of the state. The committee will also ensure effective legislative oversight in Rivers State without delay. It is also expected that the committee will use the opportunity to ensure the return of democratic order after the six months of the emergency rule.
The suspension of the democratic structure in the state was criticized by opposition politicians, organisations and notable Nigerians. They had argued that the declaration of emergency rule in any state in Nigeria did not necessarily mean that the democratic structures would be dislocated. When former President Goodluck Jonathan declared emergency rule in two states in the North-East region, the democratic structures were left intact.
In every democratic dispensation, there are challenges which existing democratic institutions will take care of and ensure they do not escalate beyond the ordinary. The federal government had cited explosions of oil facilities and insecurity leading to the loss of lives in Rivers State as an excuse to declare emergency rule in the state. But there have also been reports of insecurity in some other states in the country, which led to the loss of lives, especially in Plateau, Benue and Borno states without the President declaring emergency rule in them.
No doubt, terrorism and banditry have held the country by the jugular, especially in the Northern region. The federal government responded by encouraging the armed forces and the affected state governments to step up measures to protect lives and properties of citizens in those states.
Although the emergency rule in Rivers State was for a period of six months in the first instance, we believe that the political crisis in the state can be resolved within the period of the emergency rule so that it will not be extended. We call on the political actors in the state and other stakeholders to work together and ensure that democratic order is restored in the state after the six months.
We say this because the extension of the emergency rule in the state will not augur well for our fledgling democracy. It will also not be good for good governance in the state. Therefore, the Senate Committee should be fair to all the parties in the state and ensure that constitutional democracy is restored in the state. The current state of affairs in the state is one of uncertainty and it is not good for democracy.
The Senate oversight committee came on the heels of the House of Representatives, which on April 15, inaugurated a 21-member ad-hoc committee to oversee the caretaker government in Rivers State during the emergency rule. The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, said that the inauguration of the committee was in line with Section 11(4) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
We believe that the two committees of the Upper and Lower Houses of the National Assembly have a huge responsibility to ensure the restoration of democratic rule in Rivers State. We urge them to carry out their oversight functions with a great sense of patriotism. Beyond ensuring transparency and accountability in the administration of the state during the emergency rule, they must ensure that there is peace and protection of lives and properties of citizens during the period.
The responsibility of the two committees is to ensure that democracy is restored in the state at the expiration of the emergency rule. Nigerians and indeed Rivers people will like an early return to democratic dispensation in Rivers State. Above all, we call on the political actors in the state to work towards early restoration of democracy in the state.