ADC warns Nigeria’s democracy is at risk following Supreme Court ruling allowing the President to suspend governors during a state of emergency
The African Democratic Congress has described the Supreme Court’s judgment affirming the President’s power to suspend elected governors and state assemblies during a state of emergency as a dangerous turning point for Nigeria’s democracy.
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ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, in a statement on Tuesday, said the ruling risks undermining constitutional governance, federalism, and the will of the electorate.
The judgment, delivered on Monday, followed a suit filed in April by governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party.
The governors challenged the legality of President Bola Tinubu’s suspension of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Professor Ngozi Odu, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly amid a political crisis.
Following the suspension, the President appointed retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas as Sole Administrator of Rivers State for six months, placing the state’s administration under federal control.
Although the emergency period ended on September 23, the Supreme Court affirmed that the President possesses the constitutional power to declare a state of emergency and suspend elected officials during such periods.
Reacting, the ADC warned that the ruling concentrates excessive authority in the President’s hands, posing a significant threat to Nigeria’s democratic framework. Abdullahi stated, “Although the judgment appears innocuously academic, it represents a potential inflexion point in our democratic development, one that may alter the nature of our democracy forever.”
The party noted that the apex court granted the President discretion to determine measures required to restore peace and security, effectively allowing extraordinary actions if deemed necessary.
The ADC argued that this could enable a President to suspend governors or assemblies in states where the administration is considered unfriendly.
“The safeguards identified by the apex court—proportionality, legislative oversight, and judicial review—are ineffective under current conditions,” the statement added.
“With the President’s effective control over the National Assembly and the judiciary prioritising the letter of the law over its spirit, constitutional tyranny becomes a real and present danger.”
The ADC cautioned Nigerians that constitutional tyranny can emerge gradually, eroding democratic norms and institutions without military intervention.
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It stressed that both the legislature and judiciary may be unable to prevent a further concentration of power in the executive branch.
