Abuja—Leaders of the Ijaw Youth Council, Eastern Zone, have taken the Federal Government to the ECOWAS Court of Justice, condemning what they call the unlawful suspension of Rivers State Governor Siminalaye Fubara and other elected officials by General Bola Tinubu.
The group, spearheaded by Comrade Ibiso Harry, also contested Tinubu’s declaration of a State of Emergency in Rivers State.
In their lawsuit, marked ECW/CCJ/APP/18/25, the 12 plaintiffs urged the regional court to nullify the suspension of elected officials and dismantle the democratic structures in Rivers State, arguing that such a ruling is essential to restore a fully democratic system. They further requested the court to void all decisions, actions, policies, and directives issued by the Sole Administrator appointed by General Tinubu on March 18 to oversee Rivers State for six months.
Citing Articles III and IV of the supplementary protocol amending the ECOWAS Court’s protocol, Article II of the Court’s Protocol, and Article 33 of the Court’s Rules, the applicants argued that General Tinubu, an elected official himself, lacks the authority to suspend or remove another elected official like the governor of a state. They contended that the removal of Governor Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly blatantly violates their fundamental human rights.
“By this act, the Defendant has illegally stripped the Applicants and the people of Rivers State of their democratic rights, both individually and collectively,” the plaintiffs stated. They argued that Tinubu’s actions have plunged the state into a neo-junta style of governance, eroding their constitutional rights and subjecting them to an undemocratic and arbitrary rule that they reject.
The Ijaw youth leaders emphasized that the people of Rivers State have been politically disenfranchised, losing their dignity and the benefits of democratic governance. They accused General Tinubu of undermining democracy by arbitrarily dismantling established democratic systems, warning that such disruptions in any part of the country threaten the legitimacy of Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.
“A state of emergency cannot serve as a pretext for usurping the governor’s executive powers or the legislature’s law-making authority,” the applicants asserted in an affidavit supporting their case, filed through a legal team led by Chief Festus Ogwuche. They labeled Tinubu’s moves as a dangerous precedent that jeopardizes freedom and the nation’s democratic integrity.
No hearing date has been scheduled for the case as of yet.
