El-Rufai urges Tinubu to reinstate suspended Rivers State officials

Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, has called on President Bola Tinubu to reverse the suspension of elected officials in Rivers State, describing the move as unconstitutional and a threat to Nigeria’s democratic federalism.

In a statement on Wednesday, El-Rufai argued that the Nigerian Constitution does not grant the President the authority to suspend elected state officials.

He emphasized that such a decision undermines democratic principles and contradicts past judicial rulings, including the Supreme Court’s judgment in Dariye vs. Attorney General of the Federation, which deemed such suspensions unlawful.

While acknowledging the security concerns cited by the President, El-Rufai maintained that the proper course of action would have been to declare a state of emergency, allowing security agencies to tackle threats without dismantling democratic institutions.

He also recalled that Tinubu, as an opposition leader, had criticized former President Goodluck Jonathan’s emergency declaration in the North-East in 2013, even though it did not involve removing elected officials. He urged the President to show similar restraint and uphold constitutional governance.

El-Rufai further warned that the situation in Rivers State could set a dangerous precedent, drawing parallels to the controversial emergency rule in the Western Region in 1962, which deepened political crises.

He called on Nigerians, civil society, and democratic institutions to speak out against what he termed a gross violation of the Constitution and an affront to the rule of law.