A lawsuit against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for declaring a state of emergency in Rivers State on March 18, 2025, was dismissed by the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Governor Siminalayi Fubara and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly were suspended for six months as a result of Tinubu’s declaration of an emergency, and an administrator was chosen to manage the state’s operations.
Justice James Omotosho ruled in Abuja on Thursday that Belema Briggs and four other plaintiffs did not have the legal capacity to bring the lawsuit.
The court decided that only the Supreme Court, not the Federal High Court, could decide the case as it was stated.
According to the judge, “none of the five plaintiffs claimed to be members of the House of Assembly or the State Executive Committee, nor did they suffer any injury that was more severe than that of the rest of the people of Rivers State.”
He said that the plaintiffs had failed to secure the Attorney General of Rivers State’s approval to file the lawsuit on the state’s behalf.
According to reports, Justice Omotosho also noted that the plaintiffs had not challenged or refuted President Tinubu’s rationale for enforcing the emergency rule, which was to prevent an impending collapse of law and order.
The court ruled that the President acted in accordance with the relevant legislation regarding the Emergency Rule Order to stabilize the situation in Rivers, rejecting the plaintiffs’ claim that their fundamental rights had been infringed.
The judge deemed the case without merit, calling it unjustified and ridiculous.
Justice Omotosho declared, “The other people of Rivers’ mandate was not obtained before instituting the case on their behalf.”
