The Federal High Court in Abuja, on Thursday, September 2 dismissed a suit seeking to declare as illegal and unconstitutional the six-month suspension of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara and members of the State House of Assembly imposed by President Bola Tinubu.
The action followed the declaration of a State of Emergency in Rivers State on March 18, which lasted until September 18. During this period, the President appointed a sole administrator to oversee the state’s affairs.
Justice James Omotosho delivered the judgment, throwing out the suit filed by five concerned indigenes, led by Mr. Belema Briggs, on the primary ground that the plaintiffs lacked the locus standi (legal right) to institute the case against the President.
The court’s decision was anchored on the following key determinations:
The plaintiffs failed to demonstrate that they suffered any injury greater than that of the general populace of Rivers State. They did not establish that they were the Governor or members of the State House of Assembly, who were the directly affected parties. Furthermore, they were unable to produce any authorization or fiat from the Rivers State Attorney General empowering them to file the suit.
Justice Omotosho emphasized that a case challenging the legality of a presidential proclamation of emergency rule, as the suit was constituted, could only be determined by the Supreme Court.
Additionally, the court held that the plaintiffs failed to dispute President Tinubu’s assertion that the State of Emergency was imposed to avert a looming breakdown of law and order in the state. The claim of a breach of fundamental rights by the President was also rejected, as the court found that the appropriate law on the Emergency Rule Order had been invoked to prevent an unpleasant situation.
Justice Omotosho ultimately described the case as frivolous and baseless, noting that the mandate of other indigenes of Rivers State was not obtained before the plaintiffs filed the suit on their behalf.