{"id":2917,"date":"2025-03-23T18:28:35","date_gmt":"2025-03-23T18:28:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/?p=2917"},"modified":"2025-03-23T18:28:35","modified_gmt":"2025-03-23T18:28:35","slug":"cislac-blasts-nass-for-approving-emergency-rule-in-rivers-state-without-following-due-process","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/2025\/03\/23\/cislac-blasts-nass-for-approving-emergency-rule-in-rivers-state-without-following-due-process\/","title":{"rendered":"CISLAC blasts NASS for approving\u00a0 Emergency Rule in Rivers State without following due process"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Our Reporter<\/div>\n
Sequel to the approval of emergency rule in Rivers state by the two chambers of the National Assembly, an Abuja based non-governmental organisation known as the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has criticised the National Assembly for not rejecting the State of Emergency imposed on Rivers State by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The Civil Society Organization has warned that the ill-motivated actions were not only unconstitutional but are politically driven and amounts to abuse of executive power.<\/div>\n
\n
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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In a statement signed by its Executive Director, Dr. Auwal Ibrahim Musa (Rafsanjani), CISLAC accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of openly taking sides in the political crisis in Rivers State.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The group alleged that instead of maintaining neutrality, the President has consistently aligned with former governor and current Federal Capital Territory, (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike, saying that this has enabled him to wield undue influence over the state\u2019s governance.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u201cThe President\u2019s actions have emboldened political godfatherism and undermined democratic governance, allowing a single individual who is no longer in state government to cripple governance in Rivers,\u201d Rafsanjani stated.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
CISLAC argued that a State of Emergency can only be declared under Sections 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) in cases of widespread insecurity, a breakdown of law and order, or a failure of government institutions\u2014and none of which applies to the current situation in Rivers State.<\/div>\n
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\u201cSchools, hospitals, markets, and government institutions continue to function normally. There has been no outbreak of violence, nor has the governor requested such an extreme measure,\u201d the statement said.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
CISLAC warned that the move appeared to be an attempt to unseat a duly elected governor under the guise of restoring order. It accused the President of failing to call Wike to order while attempting to undermine a democratically elected government, describing it as a dangerous precedent.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u201cToday, it is Rivers State; tomorrow, it could be any other state where the President\u2019s allies seek to impose their will,\u201d CISLAC cautioned.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
CISLAC called on the National Assembly to reject such proposals, urging lawmakers to defend democratic values rather than succumb to political pressure and it urged them to prioritize national stability over partisan interests stating that two-thirds majority is required to approve a State of Emergency in any state.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The group also expressed concern over reports of similar plans being hatched for Kano and Osun states, and while warning that such actions could further destabilize the country, CISLAC argued that the government\u2019s approach has already triggered protests in Rivers and could damage Nigeria\u2019s international reputation, potentially leading to sanctions from the global community.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
CISLAC urged Nigerians to remain peaceful and resolute in resisting what it described as an undemocratic move and also called on the Nigeria Governors\u2019 Forum to oppose any effort to undermine constitutional governance.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
CISLAC further reminded President Tinubu of his responsibility to all Nigerians, cautioning that any attempt to suppress democracy would be met with resistance from civil society and the public.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u201cNigeria\u2019s democracy is at stake, and history will judge those who choose personal ambition over the will of the people,\u201d the statement cautioned<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Our Reporter Sequel to the approval of emergency rule in Rivers state by the two chambers of the National Assembly, an Abuja based non-governmental organisation known as the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has criticised the National Assembly for not rejecting the State of Emergency imposed on Rivers State by President Bola Ahmed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":859,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[1855,1695,1852,495,1854,1181,1853],"class_list":["post-2917","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","tag-cautioning","tag-constitutional","tag-godfatherism","tag-governance","tag-non-governmental","tag-responsibility","tag-taking-sides"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2917","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2917"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2917\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2918,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2917\/revisions\/2918"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2917"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2917"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2917"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}