Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Information and Strategy, has maintained that prior to the state of emergency rule in Rivers State, intelligence showed that militants were already targeting pipelines, risking a collapse in output across parts of the nation.
Onanuga stated this in a reactionary piece on Sunday, titled “Imagine Rivers State Without a State of Emergency.”
President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State, resulting in the six-month suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, and the elected members of the State House of Assembly.
In a nationwide broadcast on Tuesday, President Bola Tinubu revealed that his personal efforts to mediate the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State were ignored by the warring factions.
Tinubu declared a state of emergency in the oil-rich state, suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu, all members of the State House of Assembly, and other elected officials.
“The latest security reports made available to me show that between yesterday and today, there have been disturbing incidents of vandalization of pipelines by some militants, without the governor taking any action to curtail them. I have, of course, given stern orders to the security agencies to ensure the safety of the good people of Rivers State and the oil pipelines,” Tinubu had said while making the emergency rule declaration.
The development has drawn mixed reactions from several bodies and individuals across the nation.
Presidency Replies Critics
- In further reaction to the development, Onanuga stated that Section 305 of Nigeria’s Constitution empowers the President to act when the nation faces a breakdown of law, order, and economic security—precisely the case in Rivers, a bastion of Nigeria’s oil-dependent economy.
- He stressed that the political standoff between the State Assembly and Governor Siminalayi Fubara could have continued and degenerated into violence.
“Impeachment threats might have spurred attacks on lawmakers by the governor’s supporters, while militants in the creeks—primed to sabotage critical oil infrastructure—could have plunged Nigeria’s oil production back to pre-2023 lows,” he added.
- According to him, militants who were targeting pipelines were allegedly waiting for Fubara’s further signals.
“Intelligence confirmed that militants, told by Fubara to await signals, were already targeting pipelines, risking a collapse in output and a Niger-Delta domino effect,” he added.
- Onanuga maintained that Tinubu’s emergency rule intervention was crucial, as Rivers State is a significant hydrocarbon economic artery in Nigeria.
- He argued that any dislocation or politically motivated disruption of the state’s oil industry would have ripple effects on the national economy.
- He maintained that critics who claim that the emergency rule in Rivers undermines democracy are misrepresenting reality.
- He assured that the intervention in Rivers is temporary, surgical, and aimed at restoring—not replacing—democratic institutions, but rather at resetting and disarming warring political factions.
Reactions and Expectations
The declaration of a state of emergency has elicited mixed reactions from stakeholders.
- While some have welcomed the move as a necessary step to restore peace, others have expressed concerns about the potential for abuse of power and the suspension of democratic norms.
- Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party Presidential candidate in the last election Peter Obi, and Nasir El-Rufai, former Kaduna governor, rejected the state of emergency declared by President Tinubu in Rivers State.
- Atiku, Obi, and other opposition leaders, who gathered in Abuja on Thursday, also called on the National Assembly to reject it.
- As for the attack on pipelines, Fubara’s aide had described the allegations as untrue.
The aide stated that the governor cannot preach peace and non-violence, even in the face of extreme provocations, while also telegraphing attacks on oil pipelines.
