Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun, has said that President Bola Tinubu acted in good faith by declaring a state of emergency in Rivers state.
Oyintiloye, a member of the defunct APC Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), said on Thursday in Osogbo that the emergency rule was necessary to restore peace, orderliness, and good governance in the state.
The APC chieftain said that those who were criticising the president for his action were either misinformed or trying to play politics with the lives of Rivers citizens.
Oyintiloye said that the president, relying on section 305 of the 1999 constitution as amended, did the right thing by suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the state House of Assembly.
According to him, the temporary measure was not in any way to truncate democratic settings in Rivers State but rather to stop the unhealthy political atmosphere in the state from degenerating into a state of anarchy.
Oyintiloye, a former lawmaker who commended Tinubu’s courage in restoring Rivers state to the path of peace, said that his action was a demonstration of fatherly love for the good people of the state.
The feud between Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and his former political ally, Governor Siminalayi Fubara, had reached its peak with the State Assembly lawmakers initiating an impeachment process against the governor.
The APC chieftain said that the bombing of two oil facilities in the state in less than 24 hours and other lawless activities, if not checked, could lead to economic losses and a state of anarchy.
“The steps taken by the president are commendable, and it clearly shows his capacity of being a responsible and responsive leader, whose love and care for the people of Rivers state is unwavering.
“There is no doubt that the president followed to the letter the constitutional provisions for his action.
“This bold step to restore peace to the state should not be politicised,” he said.
Going down memory lane, Oyintiloye noted that this was not the first time a sitting president would declare a state of emergency in the country.
“Since the return of democracy to Nigeria in 1999, Tinubu is the third president to invoke Section 305 of the Constitution.
“Ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo did it twice in Plateau 2004 and Ekiti 2006 during his eight-year tenure.
“Former President Goodluck Jonathan also toed the same path in Adamawa, Yobe, and Borno States at the peak of insurgency in 2013.
“So this cannot be seen as a way of muzzling the elected government of Rivers state but as a measure to restore peace and good governance,” he said.
Oyintiloye appealed to all the relevant stakeholders in the state to cooperate with the newly appointed administrator, Ibokette Ibas, in fast-tracking peace to the state.
He expressed optimism that after the six months of emergency rule, all the political actors in the state would follow the path of reasoning in ensuring that residents in the state enjoyed the dividends of democracy.
