Rivers State Labour Party Chair Hilda Dokubo has weighed in on the state of emergency declared by President Bola Tinubu.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that during a national broadcast on Tuesday, Mr Tinubu suspended the state governor, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and all elected lawmakers of the state House of Assembly for six months.
Additionally, he appointed Ibokette Ibas, a retired vice admiral, as the sole administrator to oversee the state's affairs.
In response to the development, Mrs Dokubo, a former special adviser on youth affairs to ex-Governor Peter Odili, condemned Mr Tinubu's decision in a statement on her Instagram page.
The actress-turned-politician stated: "State of emergency because for two years we have had peace! State of emergency because you want to capture the economic soul of Rivers state.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Hilda Dokubo (@hildadokubo)
"State of emergency because of one man? Shameless! Perhaps Mr President should say he wants to annex Rivers state."
Animal Farm
Furthermore, she compared Mr Tinubu's declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State to George Orwell's renowned novel Animal Farm.
The 55-year-old urged every citizen of the state unfamiliar with the book to take the time to read it.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Hilda Dokubo (@hildadokubo)
"The Animal Farm by George Orwell should be given to every Rivers State citizen as palliative.
"Meanwhile, someone tells Mr Jones to rein in his pigs", she noted.
This was not the first time Mrs Dokubo criticised Mr Tinubu. This newspaper reported on 2 August 2024 that she lashed out at the president over the nationwide '#EndBadGovernance' protests.
She accused Mr Tinubu of funding counter-protesters to incite violence and undermine the demonstrations.
Furthermore, she alleged that his administration directed security forces to employ repressive tactics similar to those used during the 'EndSARS' protests.
Mrs Dokubo also blamed Mr Tinubu and the APC for fueling nationwide unrest and oppressing citizens, asserting that INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu rigged the 2023 presidential election.
