ABUJA, Nigeria — Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike has claimed that the six-month emergency rule in Rivers State could have remained in place had he wished it to continue.
Speaking on Channels Television hours after President Bola Tinubu announced the suspension of emergency rule on Thursday, September 18, 2025, Wike suggested that some individuals were profiting from the unrest in the state and did not want peace to return.
“I was watching on television today, there are people who are natural crisis builders who think they can only benefit when there is a crisis,” he said.
“If we don’t want this state of emergency to be lifted, we would have done one or two things to ensure that it continues.”
President Tinubu declared the emergency in March following a prolonged political crisis in Rivers.
The move was widely criticised by opposition figures and civil society groups, who described it as unconstitutional.
The president on Thursday, September 18, 2025, directed Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and members of the state house of assembly — all suspended during the emergency — to return to office.
Wike, who served as governor of Rivers State from 2015 to 2023, said he had spoken with Fubara and confirmed that peace had been restored.
“I spoke with Governor Fubara, and peace has now returned to Rivers State,” he said.
