John Alechenu

The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has warned that the dismissal of political appointees by the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (Retd.), poses a significant threat to democracy.

CISLAC’s Executive Director, Auwal Musa, stated this in a telephone interview with Vanguard on Thursday, describing the move as an attempt at state capture in favor of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

He accused the sole administrator of working to dismantle the existing political structure in Rivers State to pave the way for a new system that serves the political interests of President Bola Tinubu and the APC at the national level.

“What the Sole Administrator of Rivers State is doing is to demolish the political structure of the state and lay the foundation of a new system that will favor the ruling party,” Musa said.

He questioned why appointees serving the people of Rivers were being targeted simply because of political disagreements with the elected governor.

Musa also criticized Tinubu’s decision to impose a state of emergency and appoint a retired military officer as sole administrator, arguing that peace had not broken down at the time of the intervention.

“But what we are seeing today is that a majority of Nigerians feel that the President is using this avenue to capture Rivers State for his party’s interests. Admiral Ibas has just revealed Tinubu’s bias with this action,” he said.

CISLAC warned against moves that could undermine democratic governance, stressing that Nigeria must not slide into a one-party state if it is serious about nation-building.