Court Dismisses Suit Against Tinubu on Rivers Emergency Rule

The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a major lawsuit that sought to challenge President Bola Tinubu’s proclamation of a state of emergency in Rivers State earlier this year. The ruling, delivered by Justice James Omotosho, effectively validated the presidential action against the legal challenge.

Dependable NG reports that the suit, which was instituted by Belema Briggs and four other plaintiffs, was dismissed primarily because the court found that the applicants lacked the locus standi (legal right) to institute the case. Justice Omotosho explained that none of the five plaintiffs were able to establish that they were members of the State Executive Council or the House of Assembly, nor could they prove that they suffered a unique injury greater than that of the general populace of Rivers State.

Furthermore, the court noted that the plaintiffs had not obtained the necessary approval, or fiat, from the Attorney General of the state to initiate the case on behalf of the residents. Justice Omotosho added a strong jurisdictional point, stating that the originating process ought not to have been filed in the Federal High Court at all, as the determination of the validity of a presidential proclamation of emergency is a matter that falls under the exclusive and original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.

On the substantive issues, Justice Omotosho strongly supported the President’s justification for the emergency rule, noting that the claim that the intervention prevented a looming breakdown of law and order was undisputed by the plaintiffs. He ruled that the President acted under the appropriate Emergency Rule Order and that the allegations of a breach of fundamental rights could therefore not stand.

The court concluded that the case was frivolous and baseless, and that the proclamation of the state of emergency and the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, and the State Assembly members were proper and in line with Section 305 of the Constitution, having been done to avert anarchy and chaos in the oil-rich state. The emergency, during which retired Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas served as Administrator, ran for six months until President Tinubu ended it on September 17, citing restored political cooperation and stability.

Following the judgment, legal counsel to the plaintiffs has indicated that the decision will be immediately challenged on appeal, ensuring that the critical constitutional questions surrounding presidential emergency powers will be tested at the higher courts.