President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has officially gazetted a state of emergency in Rivers State, as documented in the Federal Republic of Nigeria Official Gazette No. 47, dated March 18, 2025.
The proclamation, titled State of Emergency (Rivers State) Proclamation, 2025, was made under Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution, granting the President the power to suspend the state’s elected leadership.
This action includes the immediate removal of the Governor, Deputy Governor, and all members of the State House of Assembly.
The Federal Government has appointed Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (Rtd.) as the Administrator of Rivers State for the duration of the emergency.
The government justified the declaration by highlighting an “imminent breakdown of public order and security.”
The proclamation stressed that failure to act could result in “massive loss of lives and property,” underlining the need for federal intervention to restore stability to the state.
The state of emergency was first announced by President Tinubu on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. The National Assembly ratified the proclamation two days later, on Thursday, March 20, 2025.