- Chief Reuben Olorunfunmi defends President Tinubu’s involvement in Rivers State crisis, asserting the President’s right to intervene as the father of the nation
- Olorunfunmi counters criticism, citing President Tinubu’s past interventions, emphasizing non-political motivations and lawmakers’ constitutional rights amid PDP crises
Chief Reuben Olorunfunmi, a prominent member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has defended President Bola Tinubu’s involvement in the political crisis in Rivers State. Olorunfunmi argued that the President, as the father of the nation, has the right to intervene in such matters and emphasized that the interventions were not politically motivated.
Tinubu convened a meeting of stakeholders in Rivers State, including Governor Siminalayi Fubara, where several resolutions were reached, including the recognition of the 27 lawmakers who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC, along with the payment of their entitlements.
Critics, including legal experts like Femi Falana and Ijaw Leader Chief Edwin Clark, questioned the constitutionality of the President’s involvement, describing it as advisory and outside constitutional boundaries.
Olorunfunmi, a member of the APC Elders’ Forum in Lagos State, countered the criticism, highlighting President Tinubu’s past interventions in the Ondo crisis. He asserted that the President intervened not as the leader of the APC but as the President of the country, acting in his role as the father of the nation.
Addressing concerns about the legitimacy of the 27 lawmakers’ seats, Olorunfunmi argued that they had not committed any offense and retained their positions within the provisions of the Nigerian constitution. He pointed to the internal crises within the PDP in Rivers State and the resignation of the party’s chairman, noting that the lawmakers had the right to switch parties amid the ongoing challenges within the PDP.