Niger Delta rights activist, Ann-Kio Briggs, has said that the people of Rivers State deserve to know the terms of agreement between Governor Siminilayi Fubara and President Bola Tinubu before the six-month emergency rule ended in the state.
Briggs, who stated this on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, warned that Fubara might find himself in a situation where residents would begin to doubt his credibility if there is no accountability.
This, she said, was unacceptable to people from the riverine area of the state, where the governor hails from.
“I think it’s not acceptable when politicians make these agreements over our heads; it’s like shaving the head of someone behind their back,” she stated.
“We are the people who have paid the greatest price in all of these things, and to not be aware of the decision which will affect us, and therefore, we can’t gauge the extent to which these decisions will affect us, it becomes very difficult to flow with the politicians.
“It’s just an impossible situation where we have found ourselves. We don’t know what the President has insisted on, we don’t know what was agreed upon, and where that leads the people of Rivers State. So, we need to know what was agreed on,” Briggs added.
Accountability
The activist also joined the call for the former sole administrator of the state, retired Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, to render an account of the six months he spent managing the affairs of the state.
According to her, the state funds spent during the emergency rule belonged to the people of the state and should be accounted for.
Fubara returned to office as the state governor following the end of the emergency rule on September 17, 2025.
Fubara returned to Rivers State on Friday amid jubilation by residents and his supporters.
He arrived at the Government House in Port Harcourt, accompanied by his wife, key stakeholders, and security heads.
On arrival at the Government House, the governor inspected his official residence and later proceeded to his office.
He and his deputy, Ngozi Odu, as well as members of the House of Assembly, were suspended on March 18, 2025, when President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in the state, citing political instability.
Tinubu also swore in Ibas as the role administrator, who handed over the reins of power last Wednesday.