Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has strongly criticised President Bola Tinubu over the suspension and later reinstatement of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara and members of the State House of Assembly, calling the action unconstitutional and unlawful.
In a statement shared on his official X handle on Thursday, September 18, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said there was no reason to celebrate the lifting of the suspension, as the decision had no legal basis from the onset.
“Lifting the suspension of Governor Simi Fubara is nothing to cheer about. The suspension of the Rivers State Governor and the State House of Assembly was unconstitutional when it was done six months ago and is still illegal today,” Atiku wrote.
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He argued that the president lacked the constitutional powers to suspend duly elected state officials, warning that such interference undermined democracy and signalled a slide into authoritarianism.
“President Tinubu had no power to suspend a democratically elected governor and state lawmakers. The Rivers shenanigans only signpost the dictatorship of the Tinubu administration,” he added.
Atiku’s comments came a day after Tinubu lifted the emergency rule in Rivers State and directed Governor Fubara, his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Nma Odu, and members of the state assembly to return to their offices on Thursday, September 18.