Governor Siminalayi Fubara will today resume office after President Bola Tinubu ended the six-month emergency rule in Rivers State.
Tinubu, in a statement on Wednesday, said the suspension of democratic institutions in the state would no longer continue.
“The Governor, His Excellency Siminalayi Fubara, the deputy governor, Her Excellency Ngozi Odu, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly will resume work in their offices from September 18, 2025,” the President announced.
He explained that the emergency rule was necessary to stop a breakdown of law and order when political fights between Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, threatened stability in the state.
Tinubu said: “I am happy today that there is a new spirit of understanding and readiness among stakeholders in Rivers State for an immediate return to democratic governance. I therefore do not see why the state of emergency should exist a day longer than the six months I had pronounced.”
The emergency rule, declared on March 18, 2025, had suspended the governor, deputy governor, and state lawmakers, while Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas was appointed as sole administrator.
Now that it has ended, attention turns to whether peace will last between Fubara and the Wike-led bloc that controls the state assembly.
