Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna State, has called on General Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to reinstate the elected officials of Rivers State, condemning their suspension as a clear breach of Nigeria’s Constitution.
In a statement signed on March 19, 2025, El-Rufai argued that the decision to remove elected state leaders undermines the principles of democratic federalism and exceeds presidential authority.
“There are actions so fundamentally flawed that no defense can justify them,” El-Rufai stated. “The President’s choice to suspend Rivers State’s elected officials is one such case. Our Constitution does not permit an elected president to wield power over state-elected officials in this manner. His duties, though vast, are limited by law and do not extend to ousting those chosen by the people.”
El-Rufai acknowledged the security concerns raised by Tinubu, which were cited as the basis for the emergency declaration. He stressed that while such threats to national infrastructure demand robust action, the response should empower security agencies with resources and authority—not dismantle democratic institutions. “A state of emergency could have been declared to address these issues without attacking democracy itself,” he said. “Extending it to suspend elected officials is an unjustifiable assault on the rule of law, a stance the Supreme Court has already deemed illegal in the Dariye vs. Attorney General of the Federation case.”
Urging Tinubu to reconsider, El-Rufai pointed to the President’s own history as an opposition senator who criticized a similar emergency declaration under President Goodluck Jonathan in the North-East—though that action spared elected officials. “The President should reflect on this and realign with constitutional norms,” he said, warning of the broader damage to Rivers State’s populace and Nigeria’s legal framework.
Drawing a historical parallel, El-Rufai cautioned against repeating the destabilizing emergency rule of the Western Region in 1962. “We must not stand by as this dangerous precedent unfolds,” he concluded, rallying patriots and advocates of justice to oppose what he called a flagrant violation of democratic principles.
