Rivers politics: Conditions set for Fubara’s return as Tinubu brokers truce
Following the truce brokered by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike and the suspended governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, the coast appears clear for the latter’s return to power. According to Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special adviser on information and strategy, Tinubu convened a reconciliation […]
Wike and Fubara
According to Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special adviser on information and strategy, Tinubu convened a reconciliation meeting on Thursday night at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, bringing together key figures involved in the state’s political crisis.
“Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike, Speaker Martins Amaewhule, and other Rivers State Assembly members attended the closed-door session,” Onanuga said.
Addressing journalists after the meeting, Wike announced that both camps had reached a final agreement to end hostilities and work together for the development of Rivers State.
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“All the stakeholders have agreed to work with the governor, and the governor has also agreed to work with all of us. We are members of the same political family,” he said.
Wike noted that while the crisis had dragged for months, the resolution was conclusive. “Just like humans have disagreements, they also have times to resolve them. That has been finally concluded today. We have come to report to Mr President that this is what we have agreed. So, for me, everything is over,” he said.
He added that those who believe in the process should join in, saying, “There’s no more acrimony. There’s nothing more to say.”
Fubara also confirmed the truce, describing the development as a moment of divine intervention and a turning point for the state.
“For me, it’s a day to thank Almighty God. It’s very important that this day has come,” Fubara said.
He stressed that peace was essential for Rivers State’s socio-economic development, saying “What we need for the progress of Rivers State is peace, and by the special grace of God, tonight, with the help of Mr President and the agreement of our leaders, peace has returned.”
Fubara also pledged to do everything within his power to sustain the peace.
This was the second time Tinubu had mediated between the two political leaders of the oil-rich state, the first having taken place in December 2024.
Sources at the Presidential Villa yesterday told Weekend Trust that some the truce was brokered with some conditions.
Weekend Trust could not independently confirm these conditions as of press time.
One of the sources said Fubara, as a condition for reinstatement, agreed not to seek re-election in 2027. “He is expected to serve out his current term and vacate office without rocking the boat,” the source stated.
Fubara was also said to have accepted Wike’s leadership and consented to allowing him to nominate candidates for all local government elections under the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) across the state. These nominees are to be elected without internal opposition in the election expected to take place before the end of October.
“On his return, the suspended governor will also pay all outstanding allowances and entitlements of the 27 lawmakers loyal to the FCT Minister, who were suspended from the state assembly. In exchange, the lawmakers will cooperate and work peacefully with the governor to enable him to complete his tenure,” a source said.
Daily Trust also gathered that an ongoing investigation into alleged fraud involving hundreds of billions of naira was a major consideration in the peace deal. Fubara was reportedly made to understand that any violation of the agreement could prompt his impeachment by the lawmakers, thereby stripping him of his constitutional immunity.
“He knows that without his immunity and cover from his political godfather, there will be no hiding from the EFCC. You and I know how quickly things could go downhill for him,” one of the sources said.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had, in May 2022, declared Fubara and 58 others wanted in connection with alleged N435 billion fraud.
At the time, Fubara had just resigned as Rivers State Accountant-General and was vying for the PDP governorship ticket. He was declared wanted alongside four other Rivers State government officials and others over alleged N117 billion fraud, criminal conspiracy, money laundering, misappropriation of public funds and abuse of office.
There were also reports of a confrontation between EFCC operatives and suspected thugs during an attempt to arrest Fubara at the Port Harcourt airport ahead of the election.
Background to the crisis
The rift between Governor Fubara and Wike began just months into the former’s administration. According to Wike, the disagreement centred on the control of the state’s political structure.
Wike, who claimed to have purchased nomination forms for all PDP candidates in the 2023 general elections in Rivers, sought to retain the control of the structure. Fubara, meanwhile, had attempted to assert himself as the executive governor.
The power struggle had paralysed governance and led to an impeachment plot against Fubara, spearheaded by a majority of lawmakers loyal to Wike, until Tinubu’s intervention.
Efforts by state stakeholders to broker peace repeatedly failed.
On March 18, President Tinubu had declared a state of emergency in the state, citing the prolonged crisis and the governor’s inability to rein in supporters allegedly preparing for violent confrontation.
He had suspended Fubara; his deputy, Ngozi Odu and all members of the Rivers State House of Assembly for six months.
The president had also appointed retired Naval Chief Ibok-Ette Ibas as sole administrator.
Previous peace deal brokered by Tinubu
Before declaring the state of emergency, President Tinubu had earlier brokered a peace deal between Wike and Fubara.
In December 2024, the president convened a meeting with the parties involved in the crisis and secured their commitment to an eight-point resolution aimed at restoring peace.
The agreement, signed by Fubara and Wike, required strict adherence to the resolutions by all parties.
Other signatories included the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu; Deputy Governor of Rivers State, Dr Ngozi Ordu; Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Hon Martin Amaewhule (a loyalist of the FCT Minister); acting PDP chairman in the state, Chukwuemeka Aaron; and the APC caretaker committee chairman, Chief Tony Okocha. Former Governor Peter Odili also attended the meeting.
According to the agreement, Fubara was to withdraw all court cases related to the political crisis; while the State Assembly was expected to drop the impeachment proceedings it had commenced against him.
The resolution also mandated, among others, the recognition of Amaewhule’s leadership of the House of Assembly and directed Governor Fubara to re-present the 2024 budget to the Assembly under his control.
The agreement also stated that “The remunerations and benefits of all members of the State House of Assembly and their staff must be reinstated immediately, and the governor shall henceforth not interfere with the full funding of the State House of Assembly.
“The State House of Assembly shall choose where to sit and conduct their legislative business without interference or hindrance from the Executive arm of government.
“The Governor of Rivers State, Sir Fubara, shall re-present the state budget to a properly constituted Rivers State House of Assembly.
“The names of all commissioners in the Rivers State Executive Council who resigned their appointments due to the political crisis shall be resubmitted to the House of Assembly for approval.
“There should NOT be a caretaker committee for the local governments in Rivers State. The dissolution of the local government administration is null and void and shall not be recognised.”
However, it was not long after the agreement was signed that hostilities resumed after some loyalists of the suspended governor insisted that he was shortchanged by the agreement.
Deal classic case of transactional politics — Analyst
Reacting to the latest development, a politics analyst, Dr Abubakar Kari, described it as a textbook case of transactional politics.
“In this dispensation, politicians and political leaders often reduce governance to cutting deals for personal and group interests. Siminalayi Fubara is a typical example of a transactional political player,” said Kari, a political science lecturer at the University of Abuja.
“His antecedents portray him as a pliant and pliable lackey who takes orders and lacks the will to resist his political masters—at least not for long. There are simply too many skeletons in his cupboard. Remember he had to go into hiding throughout the electioneering period, resurfacing only after being declared winner of the gubernatorial poll.”
Kari added that Fubara’s clash with Wike had little to do with governance or principles.
“Of significance is that his clash with Nyesom Wike is not about principles or the welfare of Rivers people—whose interests he swore to protect and who have had to endure emergency rule due to the selfish spat between godfather and godson.
“The real bone of contention is allegedly about who controls the sharing of the state’s political and economic resources.
“It is therefore not surprising that he capitulated, ate the humble pie, and conceded to a humiliating deal—which may well sound the death knell of his short political career. He’s simply trying to save his neck, albeit at the expense of the people who voted for him and stood by him during his travails.