President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has officially ended the state of emergency declared in Rivers State six months ago, paving the way for Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Nma Odu, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly to resume their offices on September 18, 2025.
In a statement made available to Okay.ng from the State House on September 17, 2025, Tinubu recalled that the emergency proclamation was made on March 18, 2025, following a total breakdown of governance in the state.
The political standoff had crippled cooperation between the executive and the legislature, leaving Rivers unable to pass an appropriation bill or maintain critical infrastructure.
“There was a total paralysis of governance in Rivers State, which had led to the Governor of Rivers State and the House of Assembly being unable to work together. Critical economic assets of the State, including oil pipelines, were being vandalised. The State House of Assembly was crisis-ridden, such that members of the House were divided into two groups,” the President explained.
He said the suspension of the governor, deputy governor, and legislators for six months was necessary to avert anarchy and restore public order. The National Assembly subsequently ratified the declaration.
Tinubu acknowledged dissenting voices and multiple lawsuits challenging the decision, but insisted the proclamation was constitutional and unavoidable: “It would have been a colossal failure on my part as President not to have made that proclamation.”
With intelligence reports now indicating a renewed spirit of cooperation among political actors in Rivers State, Tinubu said the time had come to restore democratic governance.
“This is undoubtedly a welcome development for me and a remarkable achievement for us. I therefore do not see why the state of emergency should exist a day longer than the six months I had pronounced at the beginning of it,” he said.
The President urged all governors and Houses of Assembly across the country to maintain peaceful collaboration in the interest of democracy and national progress.
“It is only in an atmosphere of peace, order, and good government that we can deliver the dividends of democracy to our people. I implore all of you to let this realisation drive your actions at all times,” Tinubu added.
