Atiku: State of Emergency in Rivers Threatens Democracy, Sets Dangerous Precedent

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticized the federal government’s reported plans to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State, calling it a politically motivated move. 

In a statement on Tuesday, Atiku, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of being a “vested partisan actor” in the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State.

“The declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State reeks of political manipulation and outright bad faith,” he said.

Atiku claimed that the federal government’s actions were an attempt to escalate tensions in the state rather than find a peaceful resolution. He argued that Tinubu’s failure to intervene constructively had worsened the crisis.

“Anyone paying attention to the unfolding crisis knows that Bola Tinubu has been a vested partisan actor in the political turmoil engulfing Rivers. His blatant refusal — or calculated negligence — in preventing this escalation is nothing short of disgraceful,” Atiku added.

The former vice president linked the rising insecurity in the Niger Delta region to the policies of the Tinubu administration, warning that years of stability achieved under former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua were being undone.

“It is an unforgivable failure that under Tinubu’s watch, the Niger Delta has been thrown back into an era of violent unrest and instability — undoing the hard-won peace secured by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua,” he stated.

Atiku also argued that the people of Rivers State should not suffer because of the political rift between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the federal government.

“Punishing the people of Rivers State just to serve the political gamesmanship between the governor and Tinubu’s enablers in the federal government is nothing less than an assault on democracy and must be condemned in the strongest terms,” he warned.

The political crisis in Rivers State has escalated in recent weeks following a dispute between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, leading to discussions about a state of emergency by President Bola Tinubu.

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