- FG has no hand in Rivers crisis, says minister
- Gale of resignations hits Fubara’s cabinet as four commissioners pull out
The caretaker committee chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Rivers State chapter, Tony Okocha, on Thursday said efforts made by President Bola Tinubu to settle the rift between his Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and his successor as Rivers State Governor, Simi Fubara, have failed.
There were media reports recently that the President met with Wike and Fubara with a view to settling the rift.
But the crisis continued recently with the defection of the 27 lawmakers loyal to Wike from the People’s Democratic Party to the APC.
Lawmakers loyal to the state governor have since declared their seats vacant while calling on the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct fresh elections to replace them.
While the controversy continues, the state government, on Wednesday, demolished the House of Assembly complex, saying the building is unsafe for legislative business having recorded an explosion recently.
The governor proceeded to present the 2024 budget to the five lawmakers loyal to him that sat inside the Government House.
While speaking at a press conference at the APC national secretariat in Abuja on Thursday, Okocha said although he was not part of the President’s intervention, he believed the reconciliation move had broken down.
“I wasn’t part of it, but whatever that was, it has broken down, and it has been broken irreconcilably,” he declared.
Okocha added that four members of the state House of Assembly, led by a factional Speaker, Edison Ehie, perpetrated illegality by sitting and approving the budget that Fubara presented for the 2024 fiscal year.
He added that the APC is wooing Wike to defect to the party, stressing that as soon as he becomes a member of the APC, he would become the party’s leader in the state.
He also said the embattled 27 members of the House of Assembly do not need the demolished House of Assembly complex or a physical structure to carry out their duties.
He said, “The House of Assembly can be moved anywhere. It is not necessarily down to a building. Provided the mace is present there, members can sit anywhere. As of this morning, the 27 lawmakers met and even signed some resolutions.
“Even when the building was burnt, the governor never bothered to set up a panel or committee to investigate. Apparently, we know he was the mastermind.
“Yesterday (Wednesday), the government brought it down to prove fait accompli to the members who defected. But we as a party have said we will fight illegalities and not allow anybody to hound any lawmaker.
“We are here to tell the world that we stand with the lawmakers. What they did is not an aberration. Defection is not new. In 2014, the PDP was run aground and the members left in droves to the opposing party.
“The PDP in Rivers has imploded and we are benefiting from the reward. We are telling the governor he cannot thrive on illegalities. I have given instructions to the legal adviser to petition the NJC to report the judge for delivering that ‘Jankara’ judgment.”
FG has no hand in Rivers crisis, says minister
In another development, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Idris Malagi, has dismissed allegations that the Federal Government orchestrated the political crisis in Rivers State.
In an appearance on a live television programme on Thursday, Malagi clarified that the involvement of individuals associated with President Tinubu in the crisis does not implicate the APC government.
“The occurrence of the crisis in Rivers does not automatically implicate the Federal Government as the orchestrator,” he asserted.
The minister emphasized the absence of concrete evidence linking the Federal Government to the crisis, saying, “I’ve not found evidence to suggest that the Federal Government is engineering the crisis.”
Malagi acknowledged the ease with which speculation arises due to the involvement of individuals associated with the central government, particularly President Tinubu’s cabinet members.
He drew attention to similar political situations in states like Ondo, highlighting instances where the President had intervened to resolve crises within the same political party.
The minister underscored the government’s commitment to addressing political challenges in various states, reiterating that the focus remains on maintaining stability and fostering resolution rather than inciting unrest.
Gale of resignations hits Fubara’s cabinet as four commissioners pull out
Meanwhile, the political tsunami sweeping Rivers State appears endless as four commissioners on Thursday resigned from Governor Fubara’s cabinet.
The latest to pull out of the cabinet were the Commissioners for Works, George-Kelly Alabo and his Social Welfare and Rehabilitation counterpart, Inime Aguma.
Their resignations came hours after the state’s Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Zacchaeus Adangor quit his post were contained in separate letters to Governor Fubara.
“I hereby resign my appointment as the Commissioner for Works, Rivers State, effective immediately. My decision to resign is anchored on my conscience, personal philosophy, and professional ethics,” Alabo said in the letter addressed to the governor.
“This decision was taken after deep introspection. I appreciate Your Excellency for the opportunity to serve my beloved Rivers State as Commissioner for Works.”
On her part, the Commissioner for Social Welfare and Rehabilitation cited “personal” reasons for her resignation from the cabinet and wished the current administration well.
“I hereby tender my resignation as the Honourable Commissioner for Social Welfare and Rehabilitation, Rivers State on this day 14th of December 2023.
“I thank Your Excellency for the privilege to serve in the State Executive Council. My decision to resign is personal and based on other pressing commitments. I wish Your Excellency a successful tenure and pray for best wishes in all your endeavours,” she wrote
In his resignation earlier in the day, Adangor said the move was based “purely on personal decision.”
The Rivers State Commissioner of Finance, Isaac Kamalu, has also announced resignation from the government.
Kamalu disclosed this in his resignation letter, forwarded on Thursday to the office of the governor of the state through the office of the Secretary to the State Government.
The Wike’s loyalist had in a letter tagged “RESIGNATION AS HONOURABLE COMMISSIONER FINANCE, RIVERS STATE”, noted that his resignation is with immediate effect.
The wave of resignation that has hit the Rivers cabinet is the latest twist in the political crisis rocking the oil-rich state since the rift between FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and Fubara started.
While President Tinubu had earlier waded into the crisis and met with Wike and Fubara in Abuja with Fubara saying the matter has been resolved, the fresh wave of resignation in the South South State is another fresh plot in the impasse.
