The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has fiercely criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s declaration of a State of Emergency in Rivers State, describing it as a betrayal of the Niger Delta region.
The group expressed its outrage in a communiqué issued after an emergency meeting of its Board of Trustees and expanded National Executive Committee in Abuja on Wednesday, March 19, 2025.
The emergency meeting was convened in response to President Tinubu’s suspension of Rivers State Governor, Deputy Governor, and the House of Assembly on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. PANDEF described the move as “shocking” and “widely condemned by most Nigerians.”
According to PANDEF, the declaration of a State of Emergency comes just days after President Tinubu hosted a high-level South-South delegation that included traditional rulers, former governors, and ex-service chiefs. During that meeting, Tinubu had reportedly commended PANDEF’s Peace and Reconciliation Committee for its mediation efforts in the Rivers political crisis and encouraged them to continue their work.
Despite the President’s assurances, PANDEF highlighted several troubling developments leading up to the emergency declaration:
On March 12, 2025, just a day after the delegation’s visit, FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, whom PANDEF accuses of fueling the political crisis in Rivers State, made “derogatory remarks” against the group and Niger Delta leaders. Tinubu has not reprimanded Wike despite public outrage.
Governor Siminalayi Fubara had expressed his willingness to present the 2025 budget in line with a Supreme Court judgment and the President’s directive. However, the Rivers State House of Assembly abruptly went on indefinite adjournment on March 14 and later initiated impeachment proceedings against the Governor and his Deputy.
On March 17, PANDEF formally wrote to President Tinubu expressing concerns over the obstruction of the budget presentation by the FCT Minister and the House of Assembly.
On March 18, just a day before the Governor was scheduled to present the budget, Tinubu declared a State of Emergency, effectively removing the elected state leadership.
PANDEF recalled that in May 2013, Tinubu had strongly opposed former President Goodluck Jonathan’s declaration of a State of Emergency in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa states during the height of Boko Haram insurgency. At the time, Tinubu had condemned the move as a “diabolic partisanship” meant to undermine democracy. PANDEF now questions why Tinubu would take even more drastic action against Rivers State, where the situation is far less dire than in the insurgency-ravaged North.
The group also pointed out that similar pipeline attacks have occurred in the past without triggering a military response or emergency declaration. It criticized the government’s double standards, noting that states in the North, which have suffered repeated terrorist attacks, have not faced such measures.
Furthermore, PANDEF questioned the timing of the emergency rule, as the Court of Appeal was yet to rule on the legality of the Rivers State House of Assembly members involved in the crisis. The group sees the move as a deliberate attempt to subvert ongoing judicial processes.
In its communiqué, PANDEF urged the National Assembly, led by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, to reject what it called an “onslaught on democratic governance.” The group vowed to continue advocating for peace and pursuing all constitutional means to challenge the President’s actions.
Signed by top PANDEF leaders, including Co-Chairmen HRM Alfred Diete-Spiff and Obong Victor Attah, National Chairman Amb. Dr. Godknows Igali, and National Spokesman Chief Obiuwevbi Ominimini, the communiqué underscores PANDEF’s determination to resist what it sees as an unjustified political intervention in Rivers State.
As tensions rise, the Niger Delta waits to see how both the government and the National Assembly will respond to these accusations of political overreach.
