The Supreme Court has affirmed that the President has the constitutional power to declare a state of emergency in any part or state in Nigeria to avert the breakdown of law and order to ensure that the country doe not descent into anarchy.
Delivering a split judgement is the suit filed by 11 states under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which challenged the declaration of state of emergency in Rivers State and the subsequent suspension of elected officials including the governor, deputy governor and members of the state house of assembly, six justices held that the president acted within his constitutional powers.
The court also dismissed the suit after upholding preliminary objections on jurisdictional grounds but proceeded to address the merits of the suit.
Honourable Justice Mohammed Idris while delivering the lead judgement held that Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution empowers the President to adopt extraordinary measures to restore normalcy where a state of emergency has been declared
He stated that the provision does not specify the exact nature of those extraordinary measures, thereby vesting the President with discretion on how to act in such circumstances.
The plaintiffs were the Attorneys-General of PDP-controlled states, while the defendants were the Federal Government and the National Assembly
The suit marked SC/CV/329/2025, was filed by the Attorneys-General of Adamawa, Enugu, Osun, Oyo, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom, Plateau, Delta, Taraba, Zamfara, and Bayelsa states.
Part of the reliefs sought by the palintiffs was for the apex court to determine whether the President has the constitutional authority to suspend a democratically elected government in a state and whether the procedure adopted in declaring a state of emergency in Rivers State contravened the 1999 Constitution.
Other reliefs,include, “whether, upon a proper construction and interpretation of Sections 1(2), 5(2), 176, 180, 188, and 305 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria can lawfully suspend, or in any manner whatsoever interfere with, the offices of a Governor and the Deputy Governor of any of the 36 component States of the Federation and replace them with his unelected nominee as a Sole Administrator, under the guise of, or pursuant to, a Proclamation of a State of Emergency in any of the Plaintiffs’ States.”
As well as to determine “whether, upon a proper construction and interpretation of Sections 1(2), 4(6), 11(4) & (5), 90, 105, and 305 of the Constitution, the President can lawfully suspend the House of Assembly of any of the 36 States under the guise of, or pursuant to, a Proclamation of a State of Emergency in such States.”
Reading his minority judgement, however, Honnourable Justice Obande Ogbuinya, atgued that argued that although the President may declare an emergency, this power cannot extend to suspending democratically elected officials, including governors, deputy governors, and state legislators.
