THE recent imposition of state of emergency in Borno, Yoba and Adamawa states by President Goodluck Jonathan, has elicited mixed reactions in Kano State. While some described it as constitutionally appropriate, others said it is uncalled for under the present situation in the affected states.
A renowned professor of constitutional law, a university don and former adviser to the former Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, Prof Auwalu Hamisu Yadudu, said: “There is no question of the constitutionality of the action in the first place. You cannot tell me that all other things taking place in these areas to douse tension are not working.” According to him, the state of emergency option was used in the past but it did not work.
Emergency rule, in his view, would only cause misery and untold hardship for the people in the affected states. When asked about the possibility of the emergency rule working hand in hand with the recently constituted committee that would look into the possibility of dialogue between the federal government and the Boko Haram members by the President, Prof Yadudu said he did not know how the two could go together.
“I do not know the terms of reference of the committee. But then, the committee itself was ill-advised as the state of emergency is ill-advised.” Yadudu stressed.
On the legality or otherwise of why did the president maintained the elected public office holders of the affected states, Yadudu said when former President Olusegun Obasanjo suspended the governor of Ekiti and Plateau states when he imposed a state of emergency in the states during his tenure, the action had no constitutional basis.
“What President Jonathan did by maintaining the elected officials in the three states to hold their position, is constitutionally obtainable. It is in compliance with the constitutional provisions. It is not a favour done to them at all.”
On his part, a political scientist in the Department of Political Science, Bayero University, Kano, Dr Sa’idu Ahmad Dukawa, observed that most of the military people who ruled Nigeria would be happy about the state of emergency, because it would appear to them as if the political class has failed.
He opined that there are two classes in the society, the military class and the political class. “In political science, the military is an institution of its own. That is why you get military class and political class in governments.”
Dukawa dismissed the state of emergency, saying it has not worked anywhere in the world. He gave examples of Somalia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Syria. He said those were typical examples to tell people that military intervention is not always a solution.
“Is there any foreign influence in this? Is it a preparation ahead of 2015? The two states are APC states and Adamawa was just used as a cover up,” he said.
Dukawa said that the emergency rule was nothing but a negation of the recently constituted dialogue committee.
But Dr Mamman Lawan Yusfari of the Faculty of Law, Bayero University, Kano, said that there is nothing illegal about the presidential pronouncement.
“What remains now is for him to immediately after the pronouncement, take a gazetted pronouncement to the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives for their notice and ratification. And they will now summon their sessions to discuss about the rule. There must be two-thirds of the members agreeing on it before it can continue as a rule,” he explained.
Yusufari advised the residents of the affected states to be very cautious, saying anything could happen to anybody. “So I am advising people to limit their movements in their states, unless when it is necessary”.
A human rights activist and former National Vice President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Isah Tijjani, opined that there was no wisdom in the imposition of the emergency rule in the affected states. “It has already been politicized. I am not happy with it at all,” he said.
He said it is doubtful if the emergency rule will produce the needed result. “We need to get a smooth resolution of the conflict and I don’t see it coming,” he said.
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