The Nigeria's Supreme Court has affirmed the President's constitutional authority to declare a state of emergency in a state threatened by breakdown of law and order, including the power to temporarily suspend elected officials as an extraordinary measure to restore stability.
The apex court delivered the judgment in a 6-1 split decision on a suit filed by Adamawa State and 10 other Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-controlled states challenging President Bola Tinubu's March 2025 declaration of emergency rule in Rivers State.
The declaration had led to the six-month suspension of the state's governor, deputy governor, and members of the House of Assembly amid prolonged political crisis and security concerns.
Although the court initially dismissed the suit on jurisdictional grounds, ruling that the plaintiffs failed to establish a sufficient cause of action invoking its original jurisdiction, it proceeded to address the substantive issues for clarity.
In the lead majority judgment read by Justice Mohammed Idris, the court held that Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) empowers the President with broad discretion to implement "extraordinary measures" in an emergency situation to avert anarchy or restore public order. While the provision does not explicitly list permissible actions, the court interpreted it as permitting temporary suspensions of elected officials, provided such measures are time-limited and aimed at achieving normalcy.
"The President is vested with the responsibility to protect the federation, and this includes deploying necessary tools during crises where governance has collapsed," the majority opinion stated.
The lone dissent came from Justice Obande Ogbuinya, who maintained that the President's emergency powers, though valid for declaration, do not extend to suspending democratically elected leaders such as governors, deputies, or lawmakers. He argued that such actions undermine federalism and the constitutional processes for removing elected officials.
The ruling effectively upholds the Rivers State emergency measures, which had ended in September 2025 with the reinstatement of suspended officials. Legal experts say the decision sets a significant precedent, clarifying long-debated ambiguities in emergency powers while emphasizing limits on their duration and scope.
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