Rivers: Tinubu would have resisted suspension as Gov, Fubara should fight for his reinstatement– Akande
Former presidential spokesperson Laolu Akande has stated that Siminalayi Fubara should be the first to challenge his suspension as Governor of Rivers State by President Bola Tinubu.
Akande pointed out that Tinubu would have quickly turned to the Supreme Court if a president had suspended him during his tenure as Lagos State governor from May 1999 to May 2007.
At that time, as an opposition figure, Tinubu famously contested the withholding of local government funds by then-President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government.
The former presidential aide argued that Fubara should not have waited for seven governors from his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to file a lawsuit before the Supreme Court challenging his six-month suspension.
Akande expressed disappointment, saying Fubara lacked the courage to act and emphasized that it is illegal for an elected president to suspend an elected state governor in such a manner.
He said, “It’s a good move what the governors of the PDP have done. They probably would be able to save the day. But I’m surprised that Governor Fubara himself is sitting down. If somebody did this to Bola Ahmed Tinubu when he was governor of Lagos, do you know what he would be doing?
“He (Fubara) should be the first to go to court; he is still the governor, he still has a status; he’s not been removed. He couldn’t be removed that way. There is a questionable suspension.
“The first thing Governor Fubara ought to do if he knew what he was doing was to go to court. And to tell his people that what has happened in Rivers State is against the law but he couldn’t find the courage.
“How can I be a governor and the president who was also elected is asking me to go away?
“Of course, I will go away so that there is no trouble but I will go to the courts. And I will tell my people, you elected me, the president has asked me to go to court. It is wrong and I will fight it. That is how we can build democracy. It is not about people in Agbada (flowing gown).”
For two years, Nyesom Wike, the immediate-past governor of Rivers State, and his estranged ex-political godson Fubara have locked horns over the control of the political structure in the state. Wike, though a member of opposition PDP, is Tinubu’s Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Tinubu, in a nationwide broadcast on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, imposed a state of emergency in Rivers State, suspended Fubara and his deputy Ngozi Odu; as well as the Rivers State House of Assembly members for six months in the first instance.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) powerbroker hinged his decision on Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution, saying he can’t continue to watch the political situation in Rivers escalate without taking any action.
The president immediately appointed and sworn in a retired naval chief, Vice Admiral Ibok-ete Ibas (rtd), as the sole administration for the oil-rich Niger Delta state.
About 48 hours later, the National Assembly okayed the emergency rule in Rivers, a move that has been flayed by pro-democracy groups and activists.
The suspension of Fubara and other democratically elected representatives was also expressly rejected and condemned by many eminent Nigerians, legal luminaries, and groups including Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi, Atedo Peterside, Nasir El-Rufai, Femi Falana, the Labour Party (LP), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Nigerian Bar Association, the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), among others.