Sam Philip
The state-of-emergency declared in Rivers State by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been described as cowardly and dangerous to democracy.
A human right activist and lawyer, Tope Temokun Esq stated this on Wednesday in Akure, Ondo State capital, while reacting to the development in Rivers State.
He said the nation’s constitution didn’t empower the president to remove a democratically elected governor from office.
Temokun dismissed the declaration of the president as a ploy to hijack governance in the state.
He said: “The power to declare a state of emergency by the President, as provided by Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), when there is an imminent danger or threat to national security, public safety, or public order in any part of the federation, does not empower the President to remove a democratically elected Governor.
“The removal of a Governor is governed by Section 188 of the 1999 Constitution, which outlines the procedures for such removal.
“The declaration of a State of Emergency may involve taking some measures, including deploying troops to maintain law and order, restricting movement or gatherings, and suspending certain laws or regulations.
“However, the removal of an elected governor is a hasty, cowardly move taken not to safeguard any security or governance but to hijack the state apparatus by proxy and stage a win by default for the president’s minister, Nyenson Wike.
“The entire South East and some parts of the North have been under siege for several months now and sacked by gunmen, but the president is powerless to deal with the situation. Now, a state of emergency needs to be declared in Rivers to wrestle the state powers from Fubara. This is not defensible.
“Sacking the entire democratic structures of Rivers State, including the State House of Assembly and bringing the State under military government, is a dangerous step and smacks of weakness and cowardice!”