Nigeria’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has officially lifted the state of emergency that gripped Rivers State for six months, paving the way for Governor Siminalayi Fubara and other elected officials to return to their posts.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Presidency, Tinubu said the emergency rule was necessary to resolve what he described as a “total paralysis of governance” that plagued the state earlier in the year. The emergency was first announced on March 18, 2025.
The crisis in Rivers had stemmed from an acrimonious rift between Governor Fubara and 27 lawmakers who aligned with the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Martins Amaewhule. The feud escalated to the point where the Supreme Court acknowledged that “there was no government in Rivers State.”
Tinubu declared: “It therefore gives me great pleasure to declare that the emergency in Rivers State of Nigeria shall end with effect from midnight today. The Governor, His Excellency Siminalayi Fubara, the deputy governor, Her Excellency Ngozi Nma Odu, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly and the speaker, Martins Amaewhule, will resume work in their offices from 18 September 2025.”
This resolution is expected to bring relief to citizens who had endured months of stalled governance and uncertainty. Political watchers say all eyes will now be on Fubara’s administration to see how it reconciles lingering differences with the legislature.