Fubara Seeking Peace, But Actions Don’t Match Words — Wike

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and former Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, has confirmed that suspended Rivers Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has started making peace warm-ups in the wake of a protracted political crisis that rocked the oil-rich state earlier this year.

Speaking during a media parley with select journalists on Monday at his Abuja residence, Wike disclosed that Fubara recently visited him in company of two other governors and an elder statesman as part of his reconciliatory moves.

The FCT Minister, however, said that while he is open to peace, genuine reconciliation must go beyond symbolic visits.

“Yes, he came with two governors and one elder person. Unfortunately, the two governors are APC governors. So, I will not pursue him. He said he wants peace. That’s fine. I also want peace,” Wike stated.

Wike’s comments came months after the political standoff between him and his estranged political protege, Fubara, plunged Rivers State into a constitutional crisis.

The crisis escalated when President Bola Tinubu suspended Governor Fubara, the Rivers State House of Assembly, and Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu.

President Tinubu subsequently appointed an interim administrator to oversee the state’s affairs for a period of six months, a development that drew both criticism and support from politicians and stakeholders nationwide.

Though details of the crisis remain layered in political intrigue, it is believed that the falling-out between Wike and Fubara stemmed from disagreements over political control, loyalty, and governance style.

Wike, who is an influential member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had handpicked Fubara as his successor, but their relationship deteriorated over alleged plans by Fubara to hijack his political structure in Rivers.

However, while making remarks on Monday, Wike stressed that genuine peace must be reflected in actions, not just rhetoric.

He frowned on alleged ongoing protests and media attacks reportedly orchestrated by Fubara’s loyalists, which he said contradicted the spirit of reconciliation.

“I told him, ‘Look, I don’t think you have the capacity to really make this peace.’ That’s why when I read what I read yesterday, I felt so bad. Why? If you are making peace, your people are demonstrating every day; if you are making peace, your people are busy on television insulting people. How do you feel in that case?” Wike asked.

He further said, “You must take steps. Have you met the assembly people? There are leaders you should meet. It is not to say, ‘I want peace.’ You must show it by conduct and action.”

Wike further alleged that Fubara was misled by other governors in the early stages of the crisis, suggesting that those who goaded him into confrontation have since abandoned him.

He said, “Governors came pushing him, where are they now? I think the governors are enjoying their own. Fubara is a young man. I warned him, saying, look, go this way, go this way and you will not have problems.”

The FCT Minister maintained that he remained committed to President Tinubu’s peace directive but stressed that all parties must act in good faith for a lasting resolution.

“The President has called for peace severally and I cannot sit down when the President has called for peace and I say, ‘I don’t want peace,’” Wike noted.

Fubara Seeking Peace, But Actions Don’t Match Words — Wike is first published on The Whistler Newspaper