Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has voiced his dissatisfaction with President Bola Tinubu’s decision to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State.
Speaking during a media parley in Abuja on Friday, Wike stated that an emergency rule was not the outcome he had hoped for in the ongoing political crisis in his home state.
“I am not happy with the state of emergency,” Wike, a former governor of Rivers State, said. “As a politician, I wanted the outright removal of the governor. But for the interest of the state, the president did what he had to do to prevent anarchy.”
President Tinubu last month declared a state of emergency in Rivers, citing escalating political instability and serious security threats, including recent pipeline explosions. As part of the emergency measures, Tinubu suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu, and all members of the House of Assembly for six months.
In their place, the president appointed Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.) as a sole administrator to oversee the state’s affairs pending resolution of the crisis — a move that has triggered nationwide debate and legal challenges.
Wike emphasized that, in his view, Governor Fubara had already lost legitimacy. “The matter is in court, but the truth must be told — the governor was already gone,” he said. “It’s not my job to make things easier for him. As a politician, I don’t owe him comfort, and that’s why there’s a power structure in place.”
Wike and Fubara have been at odds since the latter assumed office, with their rivalry rooted in a battle for control over the state’s political and administrative structures.
The crisis has also engulfed the state House of Assembly, where 27 suspended members defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC), resulting in the emergence of factional speakers and a parallel legislature.
