Senator representing Bayelsa West Senatorial District, Senator Seriake Dickson, on Thursday slammed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for failing to restore democratically elected government in Rivers State.

Recall that President Tinubu had, on 18th March 2025, announced the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Mrs Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the House of Assembly of Rivers State for an initial period of six months.

The President also announced the appointment of retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ette Ibas as the state’s administrator to oversee the affairs of the oil-producing state.

Speaking during a media chat after President Tinubu addressed the joint session of the National Assembly to commemorate Democracy Day and 26 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria, the former Bayelsa State Governor expressed dismay that the President, in his nationwide address, failed to reinstate Governor Fubara and his deputy, as well as members of the State House of Assembly.

He said: “let me start by saying Happy Democracy Day to all Nigerians — even though one might ask: are we truly happy?

“Democracy is supposed to inspire hope, but what we saw today in the Senate was a direct assault on that hope.”

Senator Dickson, who was visibly angry about the imposition of emergency rule in the oil-producing state, which is controlled by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), described President Tinubu’s decision on Rivers State as a forceful takeover.

“And today, it was very annoying that the Senate President chose today, Democracy Day of all days, to read the President’s own democratic communication to the National Assembly, making appointments into democratic institutions in Rivers State, when today we expected that he should announce the restoration of democracy.

“The President has said he is not working for a one-party state — well and good — but all the body language and all the strategies of the President and his party are indicative of the fact that they want a Nigeria of sycophants.

“They want a Nigeria of people who say yes to everything. And the National Assembly cannot be that.

“The National Assembly, the President of the Senate, and the President of the Federal Republic need to know that once you’ve caged the National Assembly, you have caged democracy.

“And you cannot come and then make beautiful speeches on the hallowed chambers of the National Assembly claiming that you are democratic, claiming that you are not working towards a one-party rule.

“The best way to show that the President is committed to democracy is to respect the rights of everybody — to free speech and free participation — and most importantly, most poignantly, restore as quickly as possible democratic rule in Rivers State that was unjustifiably taken away,” Senator Dickson lamented. (Nigerian Tribune: Text, Excluding Headline)