By Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja
A former member of House of Representatives and immediate past Director-General of the Peoples Democratic Party Governors’ Forum (PDP-GF), Hon CID Maduabum has called on all lovers of democracy in Nigeria to resist the State of emergency declared in Rivers State by President Bola Tinubu.
Maduabum specifically described the State of emergency in Rivers State as an ‘unconstitutional assault” on the sovereignty of the people of Rivers State.
The former federal lawmaker specifically called on all Nigerians who cherish democracy in general and the people of Rivers State in particular to resist the State of emergency.
Hon Maduabum, a lawyer, pointed out that President Tinubu’s intervention in Rivers State is no longer about restoring order, stressing that it is a brazen attempt to hand over Rivers State’s political machinery to his ally, Minister Nyesom Wike, in preparation for a 2027 takeover.
This, he stated, is not democratic governance, saying, ‘ it is a military coup in civilian disguise”.
The immediate past DG of PDP-GF noted with regrets that since the Sole Administrator Admiral Ibok Ete Ibas took office, he has done nothing to restore peace and order, “because there was no security threat to begin with”
Rather, Maduabum pointed out that the Administrator has embarked on a wholesale dismantling of existing democratic structures and handing them over to the Wike group — in a clear power grab orchestrated by President Tinubu himself.
The former federal legislator, stated these in a statement entitled, “Unconstitutional Acts of the Rivers State Sole Administrator is a Clear Power Grab Military Coup, Nothing to do with Restoration of Security”.
Access to the statement, “On 18th March, President Tinubu promulgated an illegal state of emergency in Rivers State and unconstitutionally usurped the authorities of the elected structures in the state.
He proclaimed as follows: “The Administrator will not make any new laws. He will, however, be free to formulate regulations as may be found necessary to do his job, but such regulations will need to be considered and approved by the Federal Executive Council and promulgated by the President for the state.”
“It is my fervent hope that this inevitable intervention will help to restore peace and order in Rivers State by awakening all the contenders to the constitutional imperatives binding on all political players in Rivers State in particular and Nigeria as a whole.”
“Mr. President’s stated aim was to prevent an anticipated breakdown of law and order in Rivers State. He claimed:
“Between yesterday and today, there have been disturbing incidents of vandalisation of pipelines by some militants without the Governor taking any action to curtail them.”
“He also cited the Supreme Court judgment of February 18 as proof that government had ceased to exist in Rivers State.
“However, since the Sole Administrator took office, he has done nothing to restore peace and order, because there was no security threat to begin with. Idle and without legitimate constitutional duty, he has embarked on a wholesale dismantling of existing democratic structures and handed them over to the Wike group — in a clear power grab orchestrated by President Tinubu himself”, he cited.
Maduabum formulated some questions for which he wants President Tinubu to answer.
The questiond are: “Is the appointment of a State INEC related to security or simply to re-engineer Wike’s political dominance?
“Why are Sole Administrators appointed to LGAs when neutral heads of administration already exist?
“Is the motive to grab LGA funds or create positions for Wike’s loyalists?
“How does dismantling Governor Fubara’s political structure relate to the emergency proclamation or help with restoring security?
“Can the Sole Administrator validly prepare a budget in a democracy with no legislature in place?
“Can the National Assembly even approve such a budget without formally invoking Section 11 of the Constitution?
Are these illegal actions consistent with a man with a short-term mandate?
He concluded by saying, “President Tinubu’s intervention is no longer about restoring order. It is a brazen attempt to hand over Rivers State’s political machinery to his ally, Minister Nyesom Wike, in preparation for a 2027 takeover. This is not democratic governance — it is a military coup in civilian disguise”.
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