President Bola Tinubu has officially ended the controversial six-month state of emergency in Rivers State, bringing Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy back to power at midnight on September 17, 2025.
In a nationwide address, Tinubu announced that Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Nma Odu, and the entire State House of Assembly will resume their duties from September 18, effectively restoring democratic governance to Nigeria’s oil-rich state.
The drama began on March 18, 2025, when Rivers State’s government completely collapsed.
Governor Fubara found himself battling his own legislators in a political war that brought everything to a grinding halt.
The numbers told the story: only four lawmakers stood with Fubara while a massive 27 backed Speaker Martins Amaewhule.
This split was so severe that the state couldn’t even pass a basic budget, leaving millions of Rivers residents without functioning government services.
When the Supreme Court declared that Rivers State had “effectively ceased to function,” Tinubu stepped in using Section 305 of the Constitution—essentially putting the entire state government on pause for six months.
Tinubu credits the emergency period with reducing violence and creating breathing room for bitter political enemies to find common ground.
Traditional rulers and regular citizens mostly supported the move, though it wasn’t without controversy.
Opposition groups weren’t having it, filing over 40 lawsuits to challenge Tinubu’s authority to suspend an elected government.
The legal battles raged for months, but Tinubu maintained that protecting peace justified the drastic action.
The President revealed that recent intelligence reports show a “renewed spirit of cooperation” among Rivers State’s warring politicians—the green light he needed to restore normal governance.
“With effect from midnight today, the emergency in Rivers State shall end,” Tinubu declared.
