Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a lawsuit that challenged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s proclamation of emergency rule in Rivers State, ruling that the matter falls outside the court’s jurisdiction.
Gatekeepers News reports that the suit was filed by Belema Briggs and four others, who had sued President Tinubu, former naval chief Ibok-Ete Ibas, and the federal government following the president’s March 18, 2025 declaration of a six-month emergency in Rivers.
The decision had suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the state house of assembly, with Ibas appointed as the sole administrator. The proclamation was later lifted by the president on September 17, allowing Fubara to return to office the next day.
In his judgment delivered on Thursday, Justice Omotosho held that no other courts, except the supreme court, can hear a matter relating to a proclamation of emergency, stressing that the Federal High Court was divested of the jurisdiction to hear the validity of the power of the president to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State or suspend the governor, the deputy Governor, and the state’s house of assembly members.
The judge also ruled that the plaintiffs lacked locus standi, noting that the individuals directly affected by the president’s actions were not parties to the suit.
He further remarked that even if the court had jurisdiction, the weight of evidence is in favour of the defendants,adding that Tinubu acted within his constitutional powers under Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution to prevent potential anarchy.
Consequently, the case was dismissed in its entirety.
