Tinubu Faces Criticism Over Appointments of Administrators for Rivers LGs
Worried citizens from Nigeria are urging President Bola Tinubu to advise the Rivers State Administrator, retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, regarding his most recent contentious choice.
On April 8, 2025, Ibas sanctioned the assignment of administrators to oversee the 23 Local Government Areas in Rivers State. This move occurred just under 24 hours following a federal court ruling held in Port Harcourt that barred him from conducting these appointments.
Justice Adam Muhammed Issued on Tuesday, April 7, 2025, the directive stemmed from a lawsuit brought forth by the PILEX Centre for Civic Education Initiative, headed by Courage Msirimovu , opposing the Sole Administrator in their official capacity.
However, Ibas challenged the court's decision. , has assigned new administrators and ratified the constitutions of several boards of agencies, commissions, and state-owned enterprises that were previously suspended by him.
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Pro-democracy group demands reversal of appointments
In response to this development, a pro-democracy organization affiliated with the Citizens forDemocraticWatch (CDW) reacted. condemned Ibas's action , characterizing it as "a perilous misuse of authority and a blatant assault on the Constitution."
As stated by its Executive Director, Dr Hassan Dantani On Wednesday, April 9, 2025, the organization highlighted that the appointment has sparked significant worry about "the swift decline of democratic systems under the pretense of urgent governmental control."
Hence, the CDW urgently requested President Tinubu and the leaders of the National Assembly to step in promptly to avoid the circumstance from escalating beyond management.
"Assigning 23 exclusive administrators in direct contempt of a federal court order is not just illegal—it’s dictatorial," stated Dantani.
No state of emergency should grant permission for overriding the judicial system, eliminating local governance, or operating beyond the bounds of the law. Such actions must be denounced unequivocally.
The advocates for democracy pointed out that the municipal governance framework is officially acknowledged as a level of governmental structure within the constitution. They warned that operating this system devoid of democratic mechanisms would establish an extremely perilous precedent.
"This move by Ibok-Ete Ibas constitutes a serious breach of Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution, which ensures the existence of locally governed council systems chosen through democratic elections," the statement pointed out.
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Our democratic system will not work properly if people who haven't been elected are placed in charge of local administrations through military-like assignments.
The outcome of Rivers' case sets a detrimental example.
CDW cautioned that if these appointments were permitted to remain, they might encourage subsequent political figures to disregard legal norms and undermine judicial independence.
"The outright disrespect for a legitimate judicial directive ought to concern all Nigerians, irrespective of their political leanings," stated Dantani.
When those in power disregard judicial decisions and enforce their own agenda, how much of the rule of law is left standing? If we permit such actions to continue in Rivers, they might occur elsewhere as well.
It urged the National Assembly to act with urgency call upon Ibas to clarify his behavior and make sure that all constitutional limits are upheld.
We encourage the Senate and House of Representatives to consider this issue with urgency.
"Democracy should not be compromised for the sake of expedience or political convenience," he stated additionally.
Dantani ended his statement by calling for an immediate revocation of the LGA appointments and a restoration of constitutional order.
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"The residents of Rivers State deserve genuine, democratically-elected leadership—rather than individuals chosen by appointment. We should not accept authoritarian tactics as acceptable practices within a democracy," the organization cautioned.
