By our reporter
• Comments on Presidential Power to Remove Governors Have No Link With Fubara—Statement
By Our Reporter
The Presidency has dismissed recent media reports suggesting a rift within the top ranks of the Federal Government, describing them as gross misrepresentations of Vice President Kashim Shettima’s remarks at a public event in Abuja.
In a statement issued Friday by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications (Office of the Vice President), the Presidency clarified that Shettima’s comments during the launch of the book “OPL 245: The Inside Story of the $1.3 Billion Oil Block” by former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), were purely historical in nature and had no bearing on recent developments in Rivers State.
According to Nkwocha, Vice President Shettima merely referenced a past incident during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, when discussions were allegedly held on removing him, then Governor of Borno State, during the height of the Boko Haram insurgency. He emphasized that the Vice President’s reflections were intended to commend Adoke’s professional conduct at the time and to highlight the evolution of Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.
“It is disappointing that some media outlets have twisted the Vice President’s speech into a commentary on the recent suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State,” the statement read. “This is a deliberate misreading of Shettima’s remarks and a reckless attempt to stoke division.”
The Presidency clarified that the state of emergency and suspension of Governor Fubara, announced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, were responses to “grave circumstances” in Rivers State, including politically motivated violence, destruction of public property, and threats of impeachment.
“President Tinubu did not remove Governor Fubara. He was suspended, pending further resolution of the crisis, after due consultation and in strict accordance with constitutional provisions,” the statement said, citing Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which empowers the President to declare a state of emergency when public order is severely threatened.
According to the Vice President, the National Assembly ratified the emergency declaration in Rivers with a bipartisan majority, underscoring the consensus on the necessity of federal intervention to preserve peace and institutional integrity in the state.
Attempting to draw a line between the current scenario in Rivers and the former Boko Haram crisis in the North-East, the statement described the latter as a direct assault on Nigeria’s sovereignty by non-state actors, whereas the Rivers situation was an acute political breakdown within a subnational unit.
“To compare these two vastly different situations is not only intellectually dishonest but constitutionally inaccurate,” the statement continued.
Reiterating the unity within the Tinubu administration, the Vice President Shettima said he remains firmly aligned with the President and supports the steps taken to uphold democratic order across the federation.
“Vice President Shettima stands shoulder to shoulder with President Tinubu in safeguarding Nigeria’s democracy. The media must refrain from wrenching academic or historical commentary out of context to create imaginary political rifts,” it concluded.
The Presidency also appealed to journalists and commentators to engage constructively with political discourse, urging a commitment to accuracy and national cohesion, especially in reporting sensitive issues involving the highest levels of government.