Politics
RIVERS STATE IN THE EYE OF THE STORM: POLITICS, IMPEACHMENT & NATIONAL IMPLICATIONS
RIVERS STATE IN THE EYE OF THE STORM: POLITICS, IMPEACHMENT & NATIONAL IMPLICATIONS.
By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com
“From Paris to Port Harcourt. A Constitutional Clash, Power Play and the Future of Nigerian Democratic Governance.”
In what can only be described as one of the most explosive and consequential political sagas in Nigeria’s recent history, Rivers State has once again plunged into a constitutional and political crisis that transcends mere state politics in which reverberating across the Nigerian federation and challenging the very essence of democratic governance. At the heart of this unfolding drama is Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his relationship with political heavyweights and the ongoing impeachment proceedings launched against him and his deputy, Professor Ngozi Odu.
This crisis is not a sudden spark but a culmination of prolonged political rivalry, deep factional divisions and contestations over constitutional authority. This write-up does not seek to merely narrate events; it is to contextualise, dissect and scrutinise the interplay of constitutional law, political strategy and democratic principles shaping the crisis in Rivers State whereby leaving no stone unturned in understanding its implications.
A Governor Under Siege: The Genesis of the Crisis.
Siminalayi Fubara (a seasoned accountant turned politician) officially assumed office as the Governor of Rivers State in May 2023 following a decisive electoral victory in what was then a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stronghold. However, this ascent was not without internal turmoil. His relationship with his political godfather and predecessor, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, deteriorated rapidly, setting the stage for prolonged political strife.
Political observers often quote Alexis de Tocqueville: “A democracy cannot exist without a certain measure of mutual toleration and respect for the rule of law” but yet, in Rivers State, what is unfolding can only be described as a breakdown of mutual political respect, with factional interests dominating constitutional norms.
The House of Assembly (predominantly aligned with Wike’s political camp) has, for the third time, initiated impeachment proceedings against Fubara and his deputy. The motion cites allegations of gross misconduct, including refusal to present the budget, extra-budgetary spending, obstruction of legislative oversight, demolition of the Assembly complex and alleged disregard for judicial directives pertaining to the financial autonomy of the legislature.
Speaker Martins Amaewhule declared that the legislature would pursue due process to its conclusion, even vowing to resign rather than abdicate what he described as constitutional responsibility. Critics, however, argue that this rhetoric masks political theatre rather than due process.
Impeachment vs. Political Sabotage: The APC’s Rejection.
The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC); the ruling party at the national level has forcefully rejected the impeachment move, describing it as “DESTABILIZING, UNNECESSARY and POLITICALLY MOTIVATED.” In an official statement, the party’s spokesperson, Darlington Nwauju, held that while the legislature enjoys constitutional independence, resorting to impeachment against its own governor and deputy “AMOUNTS TO DESTABILIZATION ” and risks undermining governance in an APC-led administration.
The APC emphasized fiscal and constitutional safeguards: the ₦1.485 trillion budget approved during emergency rule in 2025 remains valid until August 2026, and the Nigerian Constitution permits governors to continue spending for six months into a new fiscal year without presenting a supplementary budget therefore nullifying claims that Fubara failed in fiscal duties.
The APC’s stance is not merely partisan defence; it reflects constitutional reasoning. Impeachment under Section 188 of the 1999 Constitution (which defines the grounds and process) must be anchored in clear and demonstrable gross misconduct, grave violations of the law, or misappropriation of public funds. Citing budget timing and procedural disagreements alone does not constitute such breaches.
Renowned constitutional scholar, Professor Itse Sagay, once asserted: “The impeachment power is created by our Constitution as a last resort and not as a weapon of political vendetta.” Without airtight evidentiary grounding, impeachment becomes a tool for factional politics rather than constitutional accountability.
Fubara’s Strategic Diplomacy: The Paris Intervention.
In a remarkable turn of events, Governor Fubara reportedly traveled to Paris, France, to meet President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the impeachment session, seeking presidential intervention amid mounting pressure from lawmakers aligned with Wike.
This strategic move underscores the governor’s recognition that the crisis extends beyond state legislature corridors, reaching the national political summit. No democracy can survive if its constitutional actors operate in isolation from constitutional anchors at the federal level. Fubara’s decision to brief the president highlights an attempt to balance regional dynamics with national political order.
Tinubu, arguably Nigeria’s most influential political actor, brokered a ceasefire in 2025 when he declared a six-month state of emergency in Rivers State after earlier impeachment attempts destabilised governance. This intervention elevated the conflict from local politics to federal constitutional negotiations.
Civil Society and Legal Advocacy: Critique of the Impeachment Move.
The impeachment threat in Rivers State has drawn widespread condemnation from civil society groups and legal watchdogs. The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) described the impeachment plot as “reckless, unconstitutional, and a grave danger to democratic stability.” HURIWA accused lawmakers of acting at the behest of political interests rather than genuine constitutional oversight, urging President Tinubu to rein in the situation and uphold democratic norms.
The APC Progressive Mandate Group also criticised the proceedings as “constitutionally flawed and politically motivated,” framing it as an affront to the peace accord personally brokered by Tinubu.
These criticisms align with principles articulated by constitutional scholars: impeachment must remain a last-resort accountability mechanism, not a substitute for political dissatisfaction or factional rivalry.
Wider Political Implications: National Stability & Federalism.
The Rivers State crisis is not an isolated event; it strikes at the heart of Nigerian federalism and democratic sustainability. If a governor can be impeached (or threatened with impeachment) predominantly on political alignments rather than incontrovertible legal evidence, then the doctrine of separation of powers is imperiled.
Political scientist Leo Strauss once warned: “When law becomes subject to politics, democracy is no longer a government of law but of persons.” This insight resonates deeply in the current crisis. The Legislature’s actions risk converting constitutional mechanisms into political instruments, weakening democratic checks and balances.
Moreover, the expanded involvement of national party actors and speculation about the roles of influential figures like Tinubu and Wike, suggest that Rivers State’s political storm has strategic implications for national political alignments and the 2027 elections.
The Road Ahead: Constitutional Order, Political Integrity and the Future of Rivers.
The impeachment crisis in Rivers State represents multiple layers of conflict and constitutional interpretation versus political strategy, executive oversight versus legislative assertiveness, and local factionalism versus national political calculus.
At stake is not merely the political survival of Governor Fubara but the integrity of Nigeria’s democratic institutions. As respected democracy scholar Larry Diamond asserts: “Democracy is more than elections; it is about predictable, transparent governance under the rule of law.”
For Rivers State, the crisis is a stern test of constitutional resilience, political maturity and democratic fortitude. If constitutional processes are subverted for factional ends, the state (and indeed the nation) risks eroding public trust in democratic governance.
As events continue to unfold, Nigerians must watch closely: not just for who wins the political battle in Rivers State, but for whether constitutional order, judicial independence and the rule of law prevail in the face of political turbulence.
Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com
Politics
2027 BATTLE: How Much Nigeria Can Save, Invest In Infrastructure By Rotating Power Among Six Geo-political Zones For A Single Term Of Five Or Six Years
2027 BATTLE: How Much Nigeria Can Save, Invest In Infrastructure By Rotating Power Among Six Geo-political Zones For A Single Term Of Five Or Six Years
As a Southernern, particularly from the South East Geo-Political Zone, I believe the most potent argument for us in 2027 is that the North/South zoning arrangement of political power at the center is a scam. It’s a scam because it has only benefitted the South West and the North West geo-political zones since the return of ‘democracy’ (civil rule) in Nigeria on May 29, 1999. Nigeria, it must be clarified has six geo-political zones, not two.
Nigeria was divided into six geo-political zones in 1996 by the military government of General Sanni Abacha. This new zoning arrangement was a brainchild of the 1994/1995 Constitutional Conference chaired by the late Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte and empaneled by General Sanni Abacha.
At that Conference, no less a person than former Vice President Chief Alex Ekwueme and a group called Mkpoko Igbo proposed that since Nigeria will now be divided into six geo-political zones, to give all zones a sense of belonging within the Nigerian State, that power at the center should rotate among the six geo-political zones for a single term of five or six years. In their thinking, if power was rotated among the six geo-political zones for a single term of five or six years, within 30 years or 36 years, all six zones would have had one of their own leading Nigeria, particularly, from their first 11 (primus inter pares). The North and the South West delegations at that conference pooh-poohed Chief Alex Ekwueme and summarily shut down that all-important proposal. The rest they say is history.
More than 30 years later, there is yet no national peace, national cohesion, national political stability, national unity, and national loyalty to the Nigerian State. Had the proposal of Chief Alex Ekwueme and Mkpoko Igbo been adopted and implemented since 1999, at least, the 5th Geo-Political Zone would have had one of their own in Aso Villa today, and by 2035, the last geo-political zone would have being sending us one of their own to contest the Presidency across Nigeria’s current 18 political parties. This mathematics is if we had gone with a single term of six years (the maximum limit) as proposed by Dr. Ekwueme and the South East and South South delegates in that 1994/1995 Constitutional Conference.
Fast forward to today, in his recent Arise TV interview, and in some other public and private fora, H.E. Atiku Abubakar asked for Dr. Ekwueme’s forgiveness as he was among key Northern delegates in that Constitutional Conference from the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua group that opposed the rotational presidency among Nigeria’s geo-political zones. Waziri Adamawa had disclosed that he even apologized to Alex Ekwueme when he visited Oko, Anambra State, to pay homage to the former late vice president sometime in 2017/2018.
By and large, for 2027, I believe that the most potent argument that will sell in the South East is that the North East where Waziri Adamawa hails from, just like the South East (our region), had also been marginalized in the scheme of things in Nigeria. Aside from Alhaji Tafawa Balewa from Bauchi State (North East), nobody from the region/zone has been head of national government, head of state, or even president since 1966.
So, H.E. Atiku Abubakar is right in contesting the Presidential election billed for January 16, 2027, to right this wrong, and return Nigeria’s presidency to an equitable distribution of power at the center. When elected, and it’s entrenched in the Nigerian 1999 Constitution (as amended), that power rotates among the six geo-political zones for a single term of five or six years, this new formula will bring about national peace, national cohesion, national unity, and tremendously commandeer national loyalty among Nigerians from across the six geo-political zones for their beloved country, the Nigerian State.
As a budding political scientist of repute and ardent student of contemporary Nigerian history and politics, let me tell us what this formular would do for the Nigerian State. The battle for the soul of the Nigerian State will be ferocious at the zonal level, while the center will become unattractive. So, let’s say it is the turn of the North East Geo-Political Zone to produce the Presidency in 2027, the battle to gift Nigerians their First 11 (primus inter pares) will be ferocious across the States in the region. The people of Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, and Yobe will now be more interested in partisan politics, thus being proactive participants within the current 18 political parties in Nigeria.
Giving Nigeria’s configurations and peculiarities, one of the positives of this political proactiveness is that it’s a win-win situation for the entire region if a man from Adamawa becomes President of Nigeria in 2027. The people from Yobe, Borno, Taraba, Gombe, and Bauchi will be largely happy, contented, hold their peace, love Nigeria better, and be more loyal to the Nigerian State because one of their own is now the GCFR, the primus inter pares, and the No. 1 Citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The steep insecurity that has ravaged the North East Geo-Political Zone since 2009, largely owing to perceived agelong marginalisation, oppression, injustices, would largely die down.
This will be the same case for the South East Geo-Political Zone. Biafra secessionist agitations, IPOB, ESN led by Nnamdi Kanu, will die a natural death. Justice and equity for all breeds contentment among men, and contentment among men births peace, unity, commandeers loyalty, and tremendously brings about prosperity. I stand to be challenged on this self-evident truth on any national television station.
When it is the turn of another region to produce the Presidency, after the North East has had their turn, all political parties in Nigeria must constitutionally present a Presidential candidate from the region whose turn it is to produce the presidency for a single term of six years. This rotational presidency formula must be entrenched in Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended) by May 29, 2027.
I avow that rotational presidency among Nigeria’s six geo-political zones for a single term of five or six years is the best political science solution to the agelong hydra-headed problem of Nigeria, especially in the guise of disunity, unpeaceful, and disloyalty problems among Nigerian citizens. Doing this will also largely curtail the executive rascalities, legislative rascalities, and judicial rascalities currently being perpetrated by the Bola Ahmed Tinubu led Executive arm; the Godswill Akpabio led Legislative arm; and the CJN Kudirat Motonmori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun led Judiciary arm.
The over desperation of getting re-elected for a second term in office, as shown today by Bola Tinubu, will be eraced for future Nigerian Presidents. The humongous money and depletion of Nigeria’s national treasury just for seeking re-election at all cost, and conducting elections will also be erased.
The Highfalutin, Draining Cost Of Conducting Elections In Nigeria?
For the 2023 general election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) proposed N305 billion in May 2022, which was a 62 percent increase over the 2019 budget. Ultimately, the National Assembly approved N355 billion for the exercise, though the commission spent N313.4 billion as of September 2023.
For the 2027 general election, INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan proposed a total budget of N873.78 billion to the National Assembly in February 2026. This proposal includes N375.75 billion for election operations, N209.21 billion for technology, and N92.31 billion for administrative costs. The Bola Ahmed Tinubu led APC regime had previously allocated N1.01 trillion to INEC in the 2026 budget presented in January 2026.
Ladies and gentlemen, INEC’s election budget ballooned from N355 billion in 2023 to a whopping N873.78 billion for a re-election season in 2027? This is approximately a percentage increase of 146.13%. This is unacceptable, opprobrious, and insalubrious.
If we entrench in the Nigerian 1999 Constitution (as amended), zoning the presidency among the six geo-political zones for a single term of five or six years, this proposed N873.78 billion to coduct the 2027 re-election season would have been eliminated.
What Can N873.78 billion Do For Nigerians In Terms Of Infrastructural Developmental Projects?
If hypothetically redirected or matched in scale for infrastructure development, N873.78 billion could significantly advance Nigeria’s infrastructure across key sectors:
1. Roads and Transportation: This amount could fund the rehabilitation of over 10,000 kilometers (6213.712 miles) of rural and urban roads, especially when combined with technical support from institutions like the World Bank’s RAAMP-SU project.
It could complete critical projects like the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway or support the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, enhancing regional connectivity and trade.
2. Railway Development: Based on past projects, N873 billion could finance a new 600–800 km (373-497 miles) standard gauge rail line, similar to the Abuja-Kaduna or Lagos-Ibadan lines, which were partially funded by Chinese loans.
Rail expansion would boost freight movement, reduce road congestion, and create thousands of jobs.
3. Power and Energy: The sum could support renewable energy projects, such as solar mini-grids for 10,000 rural communities, or fund transmission infrastructure to reduce power losses.
For context, Power Africa facilitated $63 million in renewable energy investments over 26 months—N873 billion could scale such efforts dramatically.
4. Water and Sanitation: Funds could build or upgrade water treatment plants, boreholes, and sanitation systems in underserved urban and rural areas, improving public health and reducing waterborne diseases.
5. Agricultural Infrastructure: The NSIA’s Multipurpose Industrial Platform Ltd (MIPL) in Akwa Ibom, including an ammonia and fertilizer plant, is a multi-billion-dollar project. N873 billion could fund multiple such agro-industrial hubs, boosting food security and reducing import dependence.
Analyzing The Current Infrastructure Spending In Nigeria In Relation To N873.78 Billion?
For comparison, Nigeria’s actual infrastructure allocations are much lower than the humongous money INEC is proposing to conduct the shaky 2027 general elections in Nigeria.
The 2025 Federal Budget allocated ₦4.06 trillion ($2.7 billion) for infrastructure—about 7.4% of total spending.
The National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP) aims to raise infrastructure stock to 70% of GDP by 2043, requiring $100 billion annually—far above current spending levels.
Pension funds invested ₦262.57 billion in infrastructure in the first 10 months of 2025. This is below N873.78 billion being earmarked for the 2027 elections.
Without mincing words, let me aver that the N873.78 billion could transform infrastructural developmental projects in Nigeria, But the fact that this amount is proposed for elections, not infrastructural developmental projects, highlights a mismatch between public needs and government spending priorities in Nigeria, especially under the disastrous APC regime of Bola Tinubu.
Conclusion
While N873.78 billion is earmarked for elections, its scale underscores what Nigeria could achieve in infrastructure if similar resources were consistently invested. Redirecting even a fraction of election budgets toward roads, power, rail, water, and agriculture could accelerate economic growth, create jobs, and improve quality of life in Nigeria. However, transparency, accountability, and long-term planning are essential to ensure such investments yield lasting benefits.
Finally, ladies and gentlemen, let’s consider the substantial ingredients of this political seminal and fix this mess of power rotation at the center among Nigeria’s six geo-political zones for a single term of five or six years. Let’s stop wasting scarce resources in Nigeria conducting re-elections at the center and across state levels. Let’s stop wasting everybody’s time in Nigeria.
Ikenna Asomba is a political scientist and journalist. He writes from the State of Illinois, United States.
Politics
2027 BOMBSHELL: Dismantling The Myth Around Kwankwaso’s So-Called Electoral Dominance In Kano
2027 BOMBSHELL: Dismantling The Myth Around Kwankwaso’s So-Called Electoral Dominance In Kano
Politics
I am fully ready for the 2027 general elections”- ADP, presidential aspirant, Prof. Omolaja, declares
“I am fully ready for the 2027 general elections”- ADP, presidential aspirant, Prof. Omolaja, declares.
By Comrade Samson Ajibade Alabi, NLP Media Director
A presidential aspirant under the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Prof Muhammad Omolaja, has said that he is fully ready for the 2027 general elections especially the presidential contest.
Prof. Omolaja who disclosed this in an exclusive interview with pressmen in Abuja on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, said he has done his consultations with leaders of the Party, boasting that he is the next president of Nigeria by the grace of God.
He submitted that he has won the heart of the people at the grassroots across all the States and geopolitical zones including the federal capital territory (FCT); and convinced them about his clear vision and mission for Nigeria.
According to him, Nigerians are tired of the APC government and ready to vote them out in favour of his Party; the ADP!
Prof. Omolaja added that ADP is the only Party that can liberate Nigeria and rescue the citizens from the prevailing insecurity and other challenges facing the country.
The presidential aspirant said “you are asking me if I am ready for the 2027 general elections or not, I hereby inform you categorically that I am fully ready for the election; we have done what to be done, we have systematically carried Nigerians along in our preparations especially the people at the grassroots; and we have let them know that ADP is the only credible alternative Party that can liberate them from all the challenges the country is facing under the prevailing APC government. I am confident that I will get the ticket of our great Party being the leading contestant, and win the upcoming 2027 presidential election by the special grace of the Almighty God”
He therefore urged Nigerians to rally support for him and his Party (ADP) at the polls in the spirit of peace, love, unity, and patriotism in Nigeria.
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