Rivers political logjam continues

Amid escalating political tensions in Rivers State, Niger Delta leaders have launched peace talks to mediate the standoff between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

The intervention, led by the Victor Attah-led Peace and Reconciliation Committee under the Pan Niger Delta Forum, aims to bring both parties to the negotiation table.

PANDEF’s National Chairman, Godknows Igali, confirmed the development to The PUNCH on Wednesday, stating that while the committee had met with Fubara in Port Harcourt, efforts to engage Wike directly were ongoing.

He stressed the need for a face-to-face dialogue, stressing that both sides had set conditions for discussions.

“We’ve spoken with both parties and are working on facilitating a direct meeting between them.

“Peace is our priority, and we urge all stakeholders to commit to dialogue,” Igali said.

This intervention comes as the stand-off between Fubara and the 27 lawmakers of the state House of Assembly deepened on Wednesday, as an attempt by the governor to re-present the 2025 Appropriation Bill met a brick wall.

Fubara, who arrived at the Assembly quarters along Aba Road, Port Harcourt, along with top government officials, including the Secretary to the State Government, Tammy Danagogo, and his Chief of Staff, Edison Ehie, met locked gates.

The governor accused the Speaker, Martin Amaewhule, of deliberately avoiding him, stating that several calls put across to the lawmaker went unanswered.

Fubara said he was at the Assembly Quarters to present the 2025 Appropriation Bill, having formally notified the leadership of the Assembly.

He stated, “Before my arrival here, I made several attempts to speak to the Speaker. I also sent a letter which was transmitted for this particular invitation.

“Unfortunately, at the gate, you can see that the place is completely sealed, and there is no sign that anything is going to happen today.”

Also speaking at the inauguration of the Bori Zonal Hospital in Khana Local Government Area of the state, Fubara said he was at the Assembly earlier in the day in compliance with the Supreme Court judgment.

Fubara said, “I made frantic efforts to reach the Speaker, which I believe he cannot deny.

“I went further to send a WhatsApp message to him and others, notifying them that I would be coming by 10 am to present the budget so that there wouldn’t be any reason why Rivers State would be in any fix because of me, as alleged.

“But it is unfortunate that when we got there, we were denied access. And the next story I am hearing is that we didn’t make any communication. I leave it to God who sees in secret places.”

A letter dated March 11, 2025, addressed to the Speaker of the Assembly, Amaewhule, which surfaced on Wednesday, contained Fubara’s intention to present the 2025 Appropriation Bill to the House for consideration and subsequent approval.

The letter, titled, “Presentation of the Rivers State 2025 Budget to the Rivers State House of Assembly,” has as its address, Moscow Road, the location of the bombed Assembly complex, whereas the lawmakers had been sitting at the legislative quarters along Aba road.

In the letter, Fubara said the notice complied with the Supreme Court judgment which recognised the 27 lawmakers as the legitimate Assembly.

Describing the failure of the lawmakers to honour his invitation for a meeting at the Government House on Monday as unfortunate, Fubara said he decided to re-present the budget after receiving the Certified True Copy of the Supreme Court judgment.

A video later surfaced showing the pro-Wike lawmakers seated inside the chamber while Speaker Amaewhule and other officials walked into the hall with the mace.

The governor is expected to re-write the lawmakers regarding the presentation of the budget.

Speaking on the latest crisis on Wednesday, the PANDEF chairman indicated that the committee had an initial meeting with Fubara in Port Harcourt but was yet to meet with the FCT minister.

“We’ve not been able to attain face-to-face dialogue between the two sides, but we must solve the problem. We’ve spoken with the two sides and they’ve also given some conditions under which there can be dialogue.

“We will keep working, we’ll keep re-strategising on how to get to everybody who is involved, including the FCT minister.

“We met with the governor. Unfortunately, the committee has not been able to meet with the FCT minister. We met with some of his very senior people, who are from his side and heard their points of view, and we hope that we’ll be able to finally sit with him.

“The committee met with the governor in Rivers State. So, it is where they chose that the committee meets with them. There is no end to the search for peace and we will continue in that search for peace.

“What we appeal is that all parties should submit themselves to the pursuit of peace,” Igali said.

APC factions differ

Factions of the All Progressives Congress in the state differed over the scenario that played out on Wednesday.

The Publicity Secretary of the APC faction loyal to former Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, Darlington Nwauju, alleged personalisation of governance and display of malice over patriotism by the dramatis personae in the Rivers crisis.

On his part, the Tony Okocha-led faction of the APC, through its publicity secretary, Chibike Ikenga, criticised why Fubara did not wait to get a response from the Speaker before proceeding to the Assembly complex.

Assembly denies communication

In its narration of Wednesday’s drama, the Rivers Assembly faulted Fubara’s claims of being blocked from entering the Assembly to present the 2025 Appropriation Bill.

The House said it never received any official communication from the governor indicating his interest to bring the budget to the floor of the House, accusing him of whipping up unnecessary sentiments.

The spokesperson of the House and Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Dr Enemi George, stated this in Port Harcourt on Wednesday.

George said the claim by the governor was a mere comedy skit scripted to paint the Assembly in a bad light.

He said the Assembly, on March 3, 2025, wrote to the governor, requesting him to bring his 2025 appropriation bill to the lawmakers following the judgment of the Supreme Court.

George said, “We were the ones who immediately after that judgment appealed to the governor to bring his appropriation bill.

“We acted immediately because we had the interest of the state at heart and didn’t want Rivers people to suffer any harm.

“He still did not heed our call, forgetting that there are essential services like hospitals, schools and others to be funded.

“We intended to finish everything about the budget on March 15th so that we could send necessary information and documents to relevant agencies of the government to allow the release of Rivers allocations at the end of March.

“But with what he is doing, we don’t know what he wants to achieve. How can he turn around to claim that we blocked him from presenting his budget?”

The statement added, “This is the height of insincerity. We even need the budget to be passed because the governor has been owing us our entitlements for more than a year and without the budget, we can’t get our entitlements.

“The governor and his team simply and deliberately acted Wednesday’s drama with a singular motive to tarnish the image of the Assembly.

“The governor is simply playing to the gallery to whip up unnecessary sentiments. But it has backfired because the truth has come out.”

The Assembly spokesman insisted that the letter the governor claimed to have sent to the Speaker never got to him, saying it was after its sitting on Wednesday that the lawmakers saw the letter on social media.

He added, “But even the letter trending on social media was dated March 11, 2025. Does it mean that the governor purportedly sent a letter on Tuesday (God knows when), and immediately mobilised to the assembly quarters on Wednesday morning, claiming he came to present his budget?

“That alone vitiates the claimed purpose. It is procedurally trite that after writing to the Assembly, the governor ought to wait for the letter to be acknowledged by the lawmakers, who will then invite him to appear before them and make his presentation. Governor Fubara ought to know this if he is sincere.”

Wike dismisses threats

Speaking on Wednesday, Wike condemned the governor’s letter to the Speaker of the House of Assembly, noting that the Assembly was an independent arm of the government.

He also said it was an insult to have sent a letter signed by the Secretary to the State Government to the Speaker of the House.

“You have had a frosty relationship with an arm of the government. If you are a good politician, will you go and write a letter? Is it by writing a letter signed by the SSG? What an insult! Is it how it is done? If you are a politician you know what to do.

“You want to play at the gallery which is rubbish. All these letters are useless, you are not sincere, you are playing to the gallery,” he said.

Wike followed up by stating that Fubara should be impeached if he was found to have committed an impeachable offence.

Speaking during a media chat, Wike defended his adherence to due process and justice, expressing disbelief that a small number of lawmakers could enact legislation and expect it to be upheld.

“Politics is not play. If he has done something to be impeached, let them impeach him. It’s not a criminal offence,” Wike stated.

“I cannot believe that in this country, we are now at the point where Nigerians are talking about where three members of the House will sit and make a law, and they are talking about going to the Supreme Court. Do we need to go to work?” he questioned.

Wike also dismissed threats of violence and destruction of oil pipelines if Fubara is impeached as “rubbish” and “nonsense”, adding that the threats were planted by political elements for their benefit.

“I have heard people say that if they impeach him, there would be a breakdown of law and order. Rubbish. Nonsense. Tell me, who are the militants? Who is born as a militant? Tell me the person that was born, the day you were given birth, they say you are a militant? Who is not a militant? Who cannot blow the pipeline?

“Why do we arrogate this power to a certain group of people? Ijaw people are the only people who can blow up a pipeline. What nonsense is that? Who told them Ogoni people cannot blow a pipeline? Who told you Ikwenu people cannot blow a pipeline? Why do we arrogate powers to people? There is nothing like that.”

Speaking on the invitation of President Bola Tinubu to leaders of the Pan Niger Delta Forum, and their efforts to broker peace in the state, the minister described the regional body as “the worst organisation anybody can rely on,” pointing out that the same group had challenged earlier interventions by the President.

He described some of the leaders of the group as “political merchants.”

Wike said, “Yesterday, I heard that some people went to see Mr President; PANDEF. That is the worst organisation anybody can rely on. If you have a father who is always interested in money, he can sell his child or his children. All these leaders, look at the comments they have made.

“This same PANDEF came out and said Mr President has no right, they took Mr President to court. Now you are the same person coming again now, asking Mr President to intervene. Intervene what? Mr President, that has no right? Mr President, that you took to court?” he queried.

Knocks for Wike

Reacting to Wike’s statements, the PANDEF, Ijaw Youth Council, and Ijaw National Congress cautioned against Fubara impeachment talks.

The PANDEF chairman particularly expressed surprise at Wednesday’s statement by Wike as well as Fubara’s inability to access the Assembly quarters to present the budget.

While noting that Fubara’s scenario may be due to poor communication with the lawmakers, Igali urged Wike not to rubbish ongoing reconciliation efforts with his utterances.

“My attention has been drawn to some statements made by the minister today. Well, I am a little bit surprised because it came just one day after the President enjoined us to continue with peace. So if anybody indicates that it is a waste of time, that is a bit surprising.

“I am also surprised that the governor went to the Assembly and was not able to present the budget in compliance with the instructions of the President and as detailed in the court judgment.

“I do hope that there is a communication problem. If there is no communication problem, that is quite disturbing. If there were communication problems, I am sure there would be another opportunity for him to go back.

“Things that happen in a River State always reverberate to affect other states, and for a state that is at the heart of the oil belt, for which the national economy depends at this time, we do not want those disruptions,” Igali stated.

In the same vein, the IYC, Eastern Zone, vowed to go after those plotting to impeach Fubara.

In a communiqué jointly signed by its Chairman, Ibiso Harry and Secretary, Amos Benjamin, the group warned that any attempt to destabilise the government could have dire consequences for the state’s stability and the welfare of Rivers people.

They called for dialogue and peaceful resolutions, urging all parties involved to prioritise the welfare of the citizens over political manoeuvring.

The Ijaw youths accused Wike and the Amaewhule-led Assembly of exacerbating the political crisis in the state.

The communique read, “The bone of contention in this crisis is the desperate attempt by the FCT Minister to maintain control over the state’s resources, which Governor Fubara has firmly resisted.

“Fubara’s mantra, ‘Rivers money for Rivers people,’ reflects his commitment to prioritising the welfare of our citizens.

“We have supported every governor of Rivers State in the past, and we demand the same respect for Governor Fubara to complete his two terms.

“Our people have sacrificed too much in the name of political loyalty, and we will not stand idly by as these attempts threaten our collective future.”

Again, the INC threatened that Nigeria would suffer huge economic consequences should Fubara be impeached.

The President of INC, Prof Benjamin Okaba, said the decision of Fubara to comply with the Supreme Court judgment should not be taken for weakness, but that of a man who wanted true peace in Rivers State.

“Some people said Fubara is very weak. He promised the President that he would implement the judgment. Why then should the lawmakers block him from entering the Assembly complex?

“By their actions, they have shown the world how wicked they are. If they go ahead and impeach Fubara maliciously, forcefully or recklessly, we will resist it and the consequences of such action will be too heavy for the whole country to bear. This is no threat,” Okaba said.