GOVERNOR FUBARA AND FAMILY REPORTEDLY HELD HOSTAGE BY SOLDIERS AMID RIVERS STATE EMERGENCY RULE
Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his family are allegedly being held hostage at the Rivers State Government House in Port Harcourt by heavily armed soldiers, following President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency on Tuesday night.
The military deployment came swiftly after Tinubu invoked Section 180 of the Nigerian Constitution to suspend Fubara, his deputy, and the State Assembly, citing the escalating political crisis between the governor and lawmakers loyal to FCT Minister Nyesom Wike.
Sources within the Rivers State government told Peoples Gazette that soldiers enforcing the emergency rule barricaded all exits, preventing Fubara and his family from leaving.
“We are being held hostage,” an official inside the compound told The Gazette on Tuesday night. “The soldiers said they have no instructions to allow anyone to leave.”
It remains unclear whether the military is acting strictly on presidential orders or exceeding their mandate.
Tinubu’s decision to suspend the governor and appoint retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas as interim administrator has sparked intense debate. Legal experts, including Inibehe Effiong and Folarin ‘Falz’ Falana, argue that the president lacks constitutional authority to remove an elected governor without impeachment.
The political crisis in Rivers State has been brewing for weeks, with Wike-backed lawmakers attempting to impeach Fubara amid their ongoing power struggle. The emergency declaration—just 24 hours after impeachment proceedings began—has heightened concerns over Nigeria’s democratic stability.
As of now, the Nigerian Army and Defence Headquarters have yet to issue an official statement on the military’s role at the Government House.
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