Senator Ali Ndume, who represents Borno South in the Nigerian Senate, has urged President Bola Tinubu to urgently declare a state of emergency in Nigeria’s security and economic sectors, warning that the country is spiralling into a deeper crisis if decisive action is not taken.
Ndume made this call on Friday during an interview on Channels Television, where he criticised the President’s recent declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State over political unrest.
“Let the President forget about everything and concentrate on three things – security, welfare of citizens, and economy,” Ndume stated.
“His attention should go there as number one. Then he should create a state of emergency in those areas.”
Ndume’s comments reflect growing frustration among lawmakers and citizens as Nigeria continues to battle surging inflation, a weakened naira, widespread insecurity across the North and other regions, and declining public trust in governance.
The lawmaker, a prominent voice in Nigeria’s upper chamber, said the President’s priorities should be re-evaluated, noting that the crisis in Rivers State should have been handled through dialogue rather than the imposition of emergency rule.
Describing himself as “a democrat,” Ndume said he was taken aback by President Tinubu’s proclamation on March 18, which suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and all members of the Rivers State House of Assembly for six months amid a deepening political crisis in the oil-rich state.
In a nationwide broadcast, President Tinubu cited Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution, which allows the federal government to suspend normal constitutional procedures in response to national danger or internal breakdown of order, as the legal basis for the emergency measure.
The President had appointed retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.) as the administrator of Rivers State during the period.
But Ndume questioned the necessity and the timing of such a drastic action, arguing that political reconciliation should have been prioritised.
“I feel that the President would have worked seriously on bringing them (the political actors) and solving the problem than (declaring a state of emergency),” Ndume said.
“Call them, seat them down and say ‘go and sort your problem.’ How can you ignore the President? When he removed them now, did they ignore the removal?”
The Borno senator also dismissed reports suggesting that the Rivers political actors had defied presidential directives, emphasising that such a claim lacked evidence.
According to him, if the actors had truly ignored Tinubu, the President would not have been able to suspend them with such ease.
Ndume’s comments come amid mounting pressures on the federal government to address deteriorating economic conditions and the resurgence of violent attacks by insurgents and criminal gangs across several states.
Meanwhile, many Nigerians, security experts and civil society groups have echoed similar concerns in recent months, urging President Tinubu to prioritise internal stability and economic reform over political maneuvering.
