The Rivers State Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd) has described the current political and security situations in the state as fragile. He said this during his debut appearance before the House of Representatives ad hoc Committee on Rivers State
The comment credited to Ibas has posed a lot of questions on the minds of those who chose to be concerned right from when the state was subjected under emergency rule by President Bola Tinubu on March 18, 2025.
(1) The people of the state and the country at large would like to know what percentage of reconciliation has Ibas achieved in the state since he became sole administrator of the state?
(2) The political appointees of His Excellency Siminalayi Fubara which he suspended; was he constitutionally empowered to do so? The question is imperative because free thinkers have maintained that the action of the sole administrator was illegal.
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(3) Can Ibas holistically return stability to the state without bringing the warring heads which are FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike and Fubara to the negotiating table?
(4) Does the Ibas led state government appears to be serving the interest of the state or the political interest of the FCT Minister? This is because it seems the sole administrator is running the state as though the governor was removed not suspended.
In a nutshell, if the statement of fragility continues, it should be interpreted as Ibas’ inability to return peace to the state and he should be considered, replaced before extension of emergency rule will be another necessary step to be taken by the president.
Some are speculating that for the fact that the FCT Minister who is a leading figure in the crisis that resulted in the emergency rule was not suspended by the president, Wike’s political influence will be part and parcel of Ibas led administration in the state.
The National Assembly really needs to come in and play its constitutional role as enshrined in Section 11, subsection 4 of the 1999 constitution to address the fragile political and security situations of the state which the sole administrator had already raised.
