President Jonathan may on the expiration of the existing state of emergency imposed on on Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states due to the Boko Haram insurgency will on 20 November, imposing a full state of emergency on the three states and appoint military administrators for the states.
An official close to Jonathan said he is seeking legal and security advice on the three options available to the government and next line of action to take.
The source said, “These are ending of the emergency rule, another extension and a declaration of a total emergency with military administrators in charge of the three states. Let me make it clear that the constitution is silent on how many times the president can extend emergency rule in a state or any part of the federation.
“The three states may oppose extension of emergency rule. Also, with the crisis in the House of Representatives, it is impossible for the president to secure a fresh extension of the emergency.” Another source said Jonathan is under pressure to declare a total state of emergency on the three states but is trying to avoid a nasty political situation. The three states, Adamawa, Borno and Yobe are all APC controlled states.
“We learnt that there is pressure on the president to declare a total emergency in the three states and appoint military administrators. This may, however, be resisted by the opposition because proponents of total emergency are mostly from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Unless the president is tactical, the war against insurgents may assume political colour,” the source said.
A third source, however, said the President is in a fix as to whether he should completely lift the emergency rule, declare a total one or ask for an extension.
“The president is in a fix on whether to lift the emergency rule in the North-East or ask for more extension. “Jonathan has up till Thursday to make up his mind on the fate of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states. The governors of the three states had come out frankly to say that the emergency rule failed to address the Boko Haram insurgency.
“The president has to be ingenuous in designing ways out. This is why he will be seeking legal and military advice in the next few days. “With 2015 election fast approaching, it will be difficult to conduct poll under emergency situation unless all the stakeholders reach a consensus. Yet, two of the states under emergency rule are being controlled by the opposition,” the source said.