Former Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Dickson Seriake, has described the decision by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State, as action that can be likened to igniting a nuclear bomb.
Dickson, who was speaking on Arise TV on Wednesday night, describes the decision as shocking, ill-advised, lacks justification and undermines democratic principles.
President Tinubu had on Tuesday suspended Rivers governor, Sim Fubara alongside his deputy and the state assembly over the raging political crisis in the state.
The action has been widely condemned and described as unconstitutional.
Addressing the issue, Dickson says “as a committed democrat, I was shocked when the president’s proclamation was read, and I immediately released a statement to condemn it.”
He insists that although there are concerns in Rivers, the situation did not get to a point that required the president’s action.
He describes the president’s action as an extreme measure, cautioning that a state of emergency does not require the suspension of the governor, deputy, or state lawmakers.
Dickson says, “I have been making calls to ensure this incident is not misinterpreted as an ethnic clash between the Ikwere and Ijaw people. Leaders across all divides must see it for what it is—a political issue.”
He expresses doubts over the level of consultation the president must have carried out before the declaration which according to him runs counter to the principles of constitutional democracy.
He stresses that “the President knows the key actors, yet whatever step he took appears insufficient. Suspending elected officials is like igniting a nuclear bomb in a constitutional democracy.”
