Former Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Seriake Dickson, has raised the alarm over what he described as an emerging “military-style administration” in Rivers State, warning that such a precedent could endanger Nigeria’s democracy.
Speaking on the Senate floor, Dickson criticised the handling of presidential communications regarding controversial appointments in Rivers State. He said the Senate President disregarded his point of order and hurriedly approved the communications, calling the process “dictatorship dressed in legislative robes.”
“If today it is Rivers, tomorrow it could be Lagos, Kano, or any other state,” he cautioned. “You can’t declare a state of emergency, sack elected officials, and appoint loyalists to run a state just because you lost political control. That’s a coup by another name.”
While acknowledging President Bola Tinubu’s Democracy Day address as “flowery and impressive in delivery,” Dickson condemned the president’s silence on the Rivers crisis. “Not a single word was said about restoring democratic rule in Rivers State. That omission speaks volumes,” he remarked.
Reflecting on Nigeria’s democratic struggles, Dickson called on citizens to stay vigilant. “Democracy is not built by cowards, bootlickers, or sycophants; it is built by people of courage and conviction,” he said.
