Nigerian Lawmakers Accept $25,000 Bribe to Back Rivers Emergency Rule
Lawmakers at the National Assembly are at the center of a bribery scandal as administration officials sought support for President Bola Tinubu’s emergency proclamation in Rivers State.
Eleven lawmakers—seven senators and four representatives—confirmed separately that they were offered up to $25,000 to back Tinubu’s invocation of Section 305 of the Nigerian Constitution. The measure aimed to remove Governor Simi Fubara and all state legislators and impose military rule.
“Members are reluctant to even show up to the parliament,” a lawmaker told The Gazette on Thursday morning. “Some of them, especially those from Borno, received messages from their governors that they should not support the emergency rule in Rivers.”
At an executive session of the House plenary on Thursday morning, only 113 members out of 360 were present, falling short of the simple quorum of 120 required to proceed.
To counter the looming defeat, sources said loyalists of the president, including Senate President Godswill Akpabio, discussed cash bribes to sway votes. Following interviews with 14 lawmakers across both chambers, 11 confirmed receiving offers. Seven said they were paid $25,000 between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, while four received $15,000 in the same period. Two lawmakers said they were approached but rejected the offers.
Only Senator Seriake Dickson, a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party and a vocal critic of the emergency rule, stated that he received no offer.
The lawmakers reported collecting the bribes at various locations in Abuja but could not confirm if the payments came from the same source. They said the offers began around 6:15 p.m. on Wednesday as presidential aides and legislative allies sought to secure enough votes to ratify the emergency rule by Thursday afternoon.
Tinubu declared the emergency on Tuesday night, citing escalating political tensions between Governor Fubara and lawmakers loyal to Nyesom Wike. He immediately installed retired naval chief Ibok-Etuk Ekwe Ibas to govern the state for six months.
The announcement triggered widespread outrage, with legal experts and citizens calling it unconstitutional and a threat to national stability.
According to the Constitution, the president has 48 hours to secure parliamentary approval for the proclamation to remain in effect. However, the law does not explicitly grant the president the power to remove an elected state government.
Wednesday marked the first opportunity for lawmakers to ratify the proclamation, but attendance fell short. In the House of Representatives, only 80 out of 360 members were present, far below the required 120 for a simple quorum.
For the emergency rule to be ratified, the Constitution mandates the approval of two-thirds of lawmakers—240 House members and 73 out of 109 senators.
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