The Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has adjourned the suit challenging the declaration of emergency rule in the state, till May 26. The declaration also suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu and all members of the House of Assembly.

   Also, Fubara sparked confusion within his political camp following a recent comment about his eagerness to return to the Government House in Port Harcourt.

  The suit, filed by a former member of the House of Representatives, Farah Dagogo, challenged the legality of Fubara’s suspension as governor. Defendants in the suit are President Bola Tinubu, Senate President, Senate, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Rivers sole administrator, Ibok-Ete Ibas.

  In April, the judge, Adamu Mohammed, ordered that the court processes should be pasted on the wall of the defendants’ last known addresses through courier services.

  At the resumption of the hearing, yesterday, out of the five defendants in the suit, only Ibas was represented by his counsel, Kehinde Ogunwumiju (SAN).

  Cosmas Enweluzo, counsel to Dagogo, informed the court that all defendants had been served with the court processes. Ogunwumiju requested additional time to respond to the originating summons.

  After listening to the arguments, the judge cautioned against delays, adding that the case would proceed on the next adjourned date, on May 26. Speaking to journalists after the hearing, Enweluzo said: “The insecurity narrative is unfounded. In Benue, Plateau and Borno states, serious security challenges persist, people are being killed, and some local councils remain under Boko Haram control. Yet no state of emergency was declared there. Rivers State has remained relatively peaceful.”

FUBARA, who was suspended by Tinubu on March 18, 2025, following a state of emergency declaration due to a prolonged political crisis in the state, claimed that he felt healthier as a private citizen and was not keen on resuming office.

  This comment sparked varying reactions from political figures across the region. Convener of the South South Reawakening Group (SSRG), Dr Joseph Ambakederimo, described the governor’s statement as “highly regrettable.”

  Ambakederimo questioned why Fubara spent significant resources travelling to London for a peace meeting with Tinubu, and later with Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike in Abuja, if he had no desire to return as governor.

  “The governor is playing to the gallery. He has succeeded in throwing his teeming supporters under the bus. If he does not want to return as governor, why did he go to London? Why did he visit Wike in Abuja?” Ambakederimo said.

  Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, a prominent member of the Pan Niger Delta Elders Forum (PANDEF), took a more cautious approach, stating that Fubara’s comment was personal and not reflective of the views of the Rivers people. “Rivers people have taken a stand; they want the governor to be reinstated. We are satisfied with his governance. That is why everybody wants him back on the seat. When he is eventually reinstated, let him come and tell us that he will not return,” Sara-Igbe said.

  Similarly, President of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Dr Alaye Theophilus, emphasised that the fight for peace in Rivers was not about Fubara as an individual but about ending the political oppression in the state.