In the midst of the escalating feud between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, and the subsequent wave of resignations, the Rivers State Government asserts that the governor played no role in coercing commissioners to step down.
“Whatever their reason, I will like to say that the governor did not force, compel or ask anyone to leave,” the state’s Commissioner for Information, Joe Johnson, said on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics.
“Those who left did so on their own volition, and according to their reasons.”
According to a commissioner, a structural assessment confirmed the uninhabitability of the Rivers State Assembly Complex, leading to Governor Fubara’s decision to demolish it. The commissioner noted that even Wike acknowledged the deteriorating state of the complex, emphasizing that Governor Fubara is actively working to pacify the crisis.
Rivers State has become a stage for political chaos over the past three months, with the state House of Assembly transforming into a metaphorical “boxing ring.”
The discord between Wike and Fubara resulted in 27 lawmakers defecting from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), a party where Wike presently serves as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
UPDATED: Six Rivers Commissioners Resign Amid Legislative Upheaval
The rift further manifested in parallel sittings, an impeachment plot against the governor, the demolition of the Assembly complex, and a cascade of resignations from commissioners supportive of Wike within Governor Fubara’s cabinet.
Despite interventions by President Bola Tinubu and elder statesmen, the political turmoil shows no signs of abating in the oil-rich South-South state.
