The Supreme Court has affirmed the constitutional authority of the President to declare a state of emergency in any state and suspend elected officials for a limited period to prevent the breakdown of law and order.
In a landmark split decision on Monday, December 15, 2025, six justices of the apex court ruled in favor of the President’s emergency powers, while one justice dissented, upholding the federal government’s actions in Rivers State where President Bola Tinubu had declared emergency rule and suspended state officials for six months.
Delivering the lead majority judgment, Justice Mohammed Idris held that Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution empowers the President to adopt extraordinary measures to restore normalcy when a state of emergency has been declared.
Justice Idris noted that the constitutional provision does not specify the exact nature of those extraordinary measures, thereby granting the President discretion on how to act in such circumstances. The judgment establishes that during an emergency period, the President may suspend elected officials, provided the suspension is for a limited duration.
The ruling came in response to a suit filed by 11 Peoples Democratic Party-governed states challenging President Tinubu’s declaration of emergency rule in Rivers State. The plaintiffs were the Attorneys-General of Adamawa, Enugu, Osun, Oyo, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom, Plateau, Delta, Taraba, Zamfara and Bayelsa states, while the Federal Government and the National Assembly were listed as defendants.
In the suit marked SC/CV/329/2025, the plaintiffs asked the Supreme 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 violated the 1999 Constitution.
The plaintiffs specifically sought the court’s determination on “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.”
They also questioned “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.”
However, Justice Idris upheld preliminary objections raised by the Attorney-General of the Federation and the National Assembly challenging the competence of the suit. The court held that the plaintiffs failed to establish any cause of action capable of activating the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.
The six-to-one majority agreed that the plaintiffs did not demonstrate the existence of an actionable dispute between them and the Federation to warrant the exercise of the court’s original jurisdiction. Consequently, Justice Idris struck out the suit for want of jurisdiction.
In a dissenting judgment, Justice Obande Ogbuinya ruled that the plaintiffs’ suit succeeded in part. While he agreed that the President has the power to declare a state of emergency, he held that such power cannot be used to suspend elected state officials, including governors, deputy governors and members of state legislatures.
The Supreme Court had reserved judgment in the matter in October following arguments from both sides, with the decision communicated to parties on Monday.
The ruling represents a significant interpretation of presidential emergency powers under Nigeria’s Constitution and sets a precedent for how the federal government can respond to situations threatening law and order in states across the federation.
