{"id":156483,"date":"2025-03-25T17:38:29","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T16:38:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/rivers-state-northwest-civil-society-groups-take-position-on-emergency-declaration"},"modified":"2025-04-04T13:17:58","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T12:17:58","slug":"rivers-state-northwest-civil-society-groups-take-position-on-emergency-declaration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/rivers-state-northwest-civil-society-groups-take-position-on-emergency-declaration","title":{"rendered":"Rivers State: Northwest civil society groups take position on emergency declaration"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Nigeria. <\/strong><\/span>A coalition of civil society organizations (CSOs) under the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, Northwest Zone, has condemned the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State, calling it unconstitutional and a direct attack on democracy.<\/p>\n<p>The groups are demanding the immediate reversal of the decision and the reinstatement of all elected officials.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking at a press briefing held at the Dispute Resolution &amp; Development Initiative (DAG) office in Kano, the CSOs described President Bola Ahmed Tinubu\u2019s action as reckless and unlawful.<\/p>\n<p>They argued that the removal of elected officials and the appointment of a federally appointed administrator in Rivers State is a blatant violation of Nigeria\u2019s democratic principles.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe, the members and partners of the Situation Room in the Northwest Zone, unequivocally reject and condemn in the strongest terms the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State. These actions constitute an affront to constitutional democracy and the rule of law in Nigeria,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n<p>According to the coalition, the President has overstepped his constitutional mandate, undermining the sovereignty of the state and the principles of federalism.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe people of Rivers State exercised their constitutional right by electing their leaders. The President\u2019s action is a blatant disregard for their democratic choice and disenfranchises the citizens by imposing a federally appointed administrator over a duly elected government,\u201d the statement added.<\/p>\n<p>The CSOs also warned that if this decision is allowed to stand, it could set a dangerous precedent, allowing the federal government to take over any state under questionable circumstances.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf this illegal declaration is allowed to stand, it could serve as a template for future undemocratic actions by the federal government against other states. This endangers the progress Nigeria has made in strengthening democratic governance since 1999 and moves the country closer to authoritarian rule,\u201d they stated.<\/p>\n<p>Demands for Reversal and Apology<\/p>\n<p>In their list of demands, the CSOs insisted that President Tinubu must immediately revoke the state of emergency and restore constitutional order in Rivers State. \u201cThere is no constitutional or moral justification for this action. The President must immediately revoke this declaration and restore constitutional order in the State by reinstating all elected officials,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n<p>The coalition further called on the President to publicly apologize to the people of Rivers State and Nigerians at large. \u201cThe President must publicly apologize for violating the democratic rights of Nigerians and unlawfully usurping the powers of elected leaders,\u201d the groups demanded.<\/p>\n<p>The CSOs urged the judiciary and relevant stakeholders to act swiftly in safeguarding Nigeria\u2019s democracy by ensuring that the President\u2019s unconstitutional actions are nullified. \u201cDemocracy must be defended. Rivers State must not be sacrificed on the altar of political expediency,\u201d the statement declared.<\/p>\n<p>The coalition also called on Nigerians, political parties, ethnic nationalities, and the international community to reject what they described as an attack on democratic governance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe call on all Nigerians, civil society groups, and democratic institutions to stand in defense of democracy. If this illegality is allowed to stand, it will set a precedent for dictatorship and undermine Nigeria\u2019s democratic stability,\u201d they warned.<\/p>\n<p>The statement was jointly signed by representatives from various organizations, including the Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), Dispute Resolution &amp; Development Initiative (DRDI-DAG), Rural Youth Initiative, ASATTAHIR International Foundation, Justice, Development and Peace Centre (JDPC), and several others across the Northwest region.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For More News And Analysis About <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Nigeria<\/span> Follow <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Nigeria. A coalition of civil society organizations (CSOs) under the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, Northwest Zone, has condemned the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State, calling it unconstitutional and a direct attack on democracy. The groups are demanding the immediate reversal of the decision and the reinstatement of all [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":156482,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,14],"tags":[16546,16547,375,254,16544,16545],"class_list":["post-156483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-asattahir-international-foundation","tag-dispute-resolution-development-initiative-drdi-dag","tag-justice","tag-nigeria","tag-nigeria-civil-society-situation-room","tag-northwest-zone"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Rivers State: Northwest civil society groups take position on emergency declaration - Nigeria<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" 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