A high-stakes constitutional battle is brewing at the Supreme Court as eleven governors from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) contest President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of emergency rule in Rivers State.
The apex court is expected to announce a date for the hearing following its Easter recess.
Dr. Festus Akande, the court’s Director of Information and Public Relations, confirmed that proceedings will resume after the Justices return from vacation.
“The court is currently on break, but once the Justices are back at the end of the month, a hearing date will be fixed,” Akande said.
At the center of the case — filed under number SC/CV/329/2025 — lies a fundamental constitutional issue: whether the President holds the authority to suspend an elected state government and appoint an unelected official in its place.
The suit follows President Tinubu’s controversial March 18 declaration of emergency in Rivers State. The move saw the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu, and all elected state lawmakers for a six-month period, with retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas appointed as Sole Administrator.
The action sparked widespread criticism and alarm across political circles.
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Governors from Adamawa, Enugu, Osun, Oyo, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom, Plateau, Delta, Taraba, Zamfara, and Bayelsa have jointly filed the suit. Their challenge is directed at the Attorney General of the Federation and the National Assembly.
The PDP governors are asking the court to interpret specific provisions of the Constitution — including Sections 1(2), 5(2), 176, 180, 188, and 305 — to determine if the President has the constitutional backing to interfere in the governance of a state during an emergency.
They also seek clarification on whether the National Assembly can legally endorse the suspension of a state legislature under Sections 1(2), 4(6), 11(4) and (5), 90, 105, and 305.
Furthermore, the governors allege that President Tinubu, through the Attorney General, has made veiled threats to impose similar measures in other states, a development they claim undermines democratic principles and the spirit of federalism.
This legal contest, while centered on Rivers State, may set a critical precedent on the constitutional boundaries of executive power in Nigeria’s democratic system.