The Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (MBLF) considers and utterly condemns the declaration of a State of Emergency in Rivers State, including the dissolution of the State House of Assembly and particularly the removal from office of the Governor of the state Similayi Fubara and his Deputy by Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The SMBLF observed that the grounds contained in the Notice of Impeachment of the Governor and his Deputy published by the Rivers State House of Assembly a day before are to all intents and purposes deliberate rehearsals of the reasons given by the President for his unconstitutional take over of the Government of Rivers State.

That notwithstanding pretences to the contrary and pandering to judicial pronouncements in denial the world is not deceived that the House of Assembly which published the Notice of Impeachment is constituted by 27 members who have defected and become members of the President’s political party and that the declaration of the State of Emergency is only a perfection of the impeachment conspiracy.

That by its service of Notice of Impeachment and adjournment of the House of Assembly sine die thereby frustrating the implementation of the judgment of the Supreme Court in the running of the affairs of the state, members of the House of Assembly of the same Political Party with the President are responsible for the present situation of “the good people of the state not being able to have access to the dividends of democracy” as alleged by the President.

That it is most unfortunate that President Tinubu would unconstitutionally terminate a democratically elected administration on the flimsy ground that “some militants had threatened fire and brimstone against their perceived enemy of the governor who has up till now NOT disowned them” without investigation of the alleged culpability of the Governor.

That in a federation in which the President is vested with absolute powers over security and the federating states denied of any role therein, it is most unfair that the President would hold Governor Fubara responsible for the failure of proactive security intelligence under his command which obviously led to what he described as “disturbing incidents of vandalization of pipelines by some militants without the governor taking any action to curtail them”.

That there is no provision in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria including section 305 (5) under whichPresident Tinubu claimed to have derived his authority which allows the Federal Government to take-over the government of any of the federating states.

The only situation wherein governance of a state may be interfered with is provided in section 11 (4) to which section 305 is subject that “at any time when any House of Assembly of a State is unable to perform its functions by reason of the situation prevailing in that State the National Assembly may exercise powers to make such laws for the peace and good government of a state with respect to matters on which a House of Assembly may make laws as may appear to the National Assembly to be necessary or expedient until l such time as the House of Assembly is able to resume its functions; and any such laws enacted by the National Assembly pursuant to this section shall have effect as if they were laws enacted by the House of Assembly of the State: Provided that nothing in this section shall be construed as conferring on the National Assembly power to remove the Governor or the Deputy Governor of the State from office”.

That there is no doubt that the members of the Rivers State House of Assembly whose fate, in the wake of their defection to the President’s party, is still subject of litigation, are presently, in cahoots with the Minister of the FCT, responsible for the inability of the State Assembly to perform its functions for which reason the National Assembly may feel justifiably called upon to make laws for the state in the interim.

That the decision by the President to sack the democratically elected Government and appoint a military Administrator to take charge of the affairs of the state by regulations subject to the consideration and approval by the Federal Executive Council is an undisguised and provocative handing over of Rivers State to its immediate past Governor and Minister of the FCT whose appetite for continuing ruling of the state by proxy is sought to be thereby quenched.

The SMBLF recalled that during the hey days of insurgency in the North East, President Goodluck Jonathan in conjunction with the National Assembly declared a state of emergency in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states in 2013 without hurting the democratic structures of which the present Vice President who was then Governor of Borno State, in spite of his open hostility to the President, was a beneficiary.

That the National Assembly in the exercise of its powers under the Constitution particularly Sections 305 thereof is hereby called upon to countermand the despotic and ominous order of the President sacking a democratically elected administration in preference of a military Administrator in a proclamation reminiscent of our unenviable not too distant past.

The Youths of River State, and indeed that of the Niger Delta, should restrain from using violent reactions to this unfortunate development, as in the end its the citizenry that will pay the price of any economic sabotage.
That the citizens of Nigeria should stoutly discourage the growing culture of intolerance under the present administration tending Nigeria to a one-party state.

Issued at Abuja this 19th day of March 2025

Signed by:

HRH Oba Oladipo Olaitan, Afenifere Leader

Dr Bitrus Pogu, Middle Belt Leaders Forum National President

Senator John Azuta Mbata, Ohanaeze Ndigbo President General

Ambassador Godknows Igali, PANDEF National Chairman.

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery says it has temporarily halted the sale of petroleum products in naira.

The refinery announced the decision in a statement on Wednesday.

The development comes a few hours after TheCable reported that the refinery would stop loading petroleum products for the Nigerian market as the renegotiation of the naira-for-crude deal is not recording significant progress.

Sources had told the publication the refinery would continue to load for export as it currently sources all its crude stock from the international market in dollars.

In the statement, the refinery said the decision to halt sales in naira was “necessary to avoid a mismatch between our sales proceeds and our crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in U.S. dollars”.

“To date, our sales of petroleum products in Naira have exceeded the value of Naira-denominated crude we have received,” the statement reads.

“As a result, we must temporarily adjust our sales currency to align with our crude procurement currency.”

The refinery also debunked claims that the temporary suspension was due to ticketing frauds, saying they are “malicious”.

The firm, however, assured that sales would resume in naira as soon as they receive crude supply in naira from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited.

“Our attention has also been drawn to reports on the internet claiming that we are stopping loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud,” Dangote refinery said.

“This is a malicious falsehood. Our systems are robust and we have had no fraud issues.

“We remain committed to serving the Nigerian market efficiently and sustainably.

“As soon as we receive an allocation of Naira-denominated crude cargoes from NNPC, we will promptly resume petroleum product sales in Naira.”

On March 10, TheCable reported that the NNPC had suspended the naira-for-crude deal until 2030, as the government-owned company has forward-sold all its crude oil.

However, following the report, the NNPC said negotiations are ongoing for a new naira-for-crude deal with the refinery, as the current agreement will expire at the end of March.

Zaach Adedeji, chairman of the naira-for-crude policy technical sub-committee, reassured that the naira-based crude oil supply arrangement with local refineries has not been discontinued.

Nigeria officially commenced the sale of crude oil and refined petroleum products in naira on October 1, 2024, after the federal executive council (FEC) approved a proposal by President Bola Tinubu directing the NNPC to sell crude oil to Dangote refinery and other refineries in the local currency.

However, in November last year, the refinery said the crude-for-naira initiative was faltering, as it was still unable to secure adequate supplies.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) unequivocally condemn Mr. President’s hasty and unconstitutional declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State. This action blatantly violates the provisions of Part II, Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and constitutes an overreach of executive power.

The purported suspension or removal of the Governor, Deputy Governor, and the State House of Assembly is not only unlawful but a direct assault on democracy. 

It sets a dangerous precedent, eroding constitutional governance and threatening the autonomy of subnational governments. 

No democratic society can thrive where elected leaders are arbitrarily removed at the whims of the President. This reckless move should deeply concern every reasonable governor and citizen who believes in the rule of law.

We, therefore, call on Mr. President to revoke this unconstitutional declaration in compliance with Section 305(6) of the Constitution, which clearly outlines the legal process for declaring and sustaining a state of emergency.

The President, as the custodian of the nation’s executive powers, must exercise restraint, respect constitutional limits, and act in a manner that inspires national confidence rather than suspicion. 

Any decision that jeopardizes national security, economic stability, and democratic governance must be reconsidered.

 Nigeria has suffered the painful consequences of political overreach in the past, and we cannot afford to repeat such mistakes.

Beyond the political and legal implications, this unjustified state of emergency will have severe socio-economic repercussions on workers and the masses. It will:

 Disrupt economic activities, forcing businesses to shut down or scale back operations;

Lead to job losses, wage cuts, and economic hardship for thousands of workers in both the formal and informal sectors;

Create an atmosphere of uncertainty, discouraging investment and slowing economic growth in Rivers State and beyond;

Expose citizens to security risks, as history has shown that politically motivated states of emergency often escalate rather than resolve crises.

Accordingly, the Labour movement will not remain silent while the livelihoods of workers and the well-being of ordinary Nigerians are threatened by political machinations.

Given his storied background in political struggle, we urge Mr. President not to betray his democratic credentials by engaging in actions reminiscent of military-era authoritarianism.

 Leadership demands wisdom, restraint, and an unwavering commitment to democratic principles.

We demand the immediate reversal of this unconstitutional state of emergency in the interest of democracy, economic stability, and the welfare of Nigerian workers. Nigeria’s democracy must not be sacrificed on the altar of political expediency.

Comrade Joe Ajaero 

President, NLC.

 Engineer Festus Osifo

President, TUC.