A Chief Magistrate in Rivers State, Ejike King George, has resigned his appointment in protest against the recent political developments in the state following President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency.
In a resignation letter dated April 11, 2025, and addressed to the Chief Judge of Rivers State through the secretary of the State Judicial Service Commission, Mr George cited discomfort with the imposition of a quasi-military administration as the reason for his decision.
He described the current governance structure as “alien” and “antithetical” to the ideals of the legal profession, referencing the president’s suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu, and the State House of Assembly for six months, along with the appointment of former Chief of Naval Staff, Ibok-Ete Ibas, as sole administrator of the state.
“This letter is intended to convey my decision to voluntarily retire from my appointment as magistrate in the Rivers State Judiciary,” Mr George wrote.
“This difficult and regrettable decision is informed largely by my discomfort with the recent appointment of a quasi-military administration to run the affairs of a modern state like ours.”
Mr George, who has served 16 years as a magistrate out of his 22-year legal career, said remaining in the judiciary under the current arrangement would amount to a “tacit and naive acquiescence” to a system that undermines democratic principles.
President Tinubu, in a nationwide broadcast in March, defended the emergency measures, citing security concerns arising from the prolonged political crisis involving Governor Fubara, FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, and the Rivers State House of Assembly.
