Veteran actress and politician Hilda Dokubo has strongly criticized President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State, accusing him of attempting to seize control of the state’s economic resources.
Speaking in a public interview surrounded by a crowd, Dokubo expressed outrage over the crisis, questioning why the state was being destabilized over political interests.
“Now you have crippled people, and all we see is weh, weh, weh, weh. What for? Because of one man? I will say it over and over and over. Whoa, because of one man?”
She argued that the crisis was not about Governor Siminalayi Fubara but rather an economic takeover.
“What’s going on in Rivers State is not similar to what’s going on in Rivers State. It’s a comeback for the economic soul of Rivers State. Somebody wants to grab the economic soul of Rivers State. The soul of Rivers State! For 24 years, they kept milking us. That was how our money was flying all over our heads. It is here today. It is there tomorrow. It is funding all kinds of foolishness.”
Dokubo then praised Fubara’s administration, highlighting improvements in workers’ welfare and infrastructure development.
“This is the first time that civil servants have been paid in 13 months. Every Christmas, for two years, civil servants get paid. For two years—7, 7, 7, 8! Civil servants have been paid all their salaries. That’s a lot! For the first time, there are roads connecting the riverine community. It has never happened! They told us, they lied to us. They told us our terrain was too bad. Now we know our terrain is not bad! Yeah! Now we know.”
She also emphasized that the state should not be plunged into violence, calling for peace amid the political crisis.
“He told us that we can. And it can be any way but no war. No bloodshed. No gun shooting. And it happens, yeah. And it happened here. And it happened. And it happened here.”
Dokubo further criticized the political maneuvers surrounding the state’s budget, accusing those in power of making governance difficult for Fubara.
“Today, you have told everybody to go. You say go and resubmit a budget. He writes. He says come. Come and choose with me a befitting place that you want so that I can present this budget. You made it impossible for him! He wrote, ‘I am coming to you.’ You locked him out! He wrote again to say, ‘I will still come again.’ And you wrote to him as a reply, ‘That’s for insubordination’ or whatever. And then the next thing you do is…”
Dokubo’s speech comes amid a growing outcry against President Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State. The decision, announced on March 18, 2025, led to the suspension of Governor Fubara, his deputy, and all members of the Rivers State House of Assembly for six months. The federal government cited political instability and governance breakdown as the reasons for the drastic measure.
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has condemned the move, calling it unconstitutional and warning that it sets a dangerous precedent for democracy. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar also criticized the declaration, describing it as “political manipulation and outright bad faith.”
As tensions escalate, Rivers State remains at the center of a national debate over political interference and economic control.
