The Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has openly criticized Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), for his recent remarks concerning the local government election held in the state. The former governor had raised concerns about the legitimacy of the election and Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s decision to proceed with it, despite a court ruling.
In an interview with Channels TV, Wike expressed his displeasure with the Rivers State governor for conducting the election on Saturday, citing a Federal High Court judgement. The court, presided over by Justice Peter Lifu, ruled that the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) had failed to follow necessary legal procedures, including the requirement to publish a 90-day notice before setting the election date. The court also barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from providing voter registers for the election and prohibited the Inspector General of Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) from offering security for the polls.
Despite this ruling, Governor Fubara proceeded with the election. As a result, the Action Peoples Party (APP), with candidates loyal to Fubara, won the chairmanship in 22 out of 23 local government areas. The election, however, has been marred by violence, with clashes between supporters of Wike and Fubara escalating both during and after the polls. On Monday, arsonists, reportedly Wike’s supporters, set fire to the Ikwerre Local Government secretariat, while other violent incidents occurred in different council areas.
Wike, in his first public statement on the matter, accused Governor Fubara of undermining democracy by ignoring the court’s judgement. He further blamed Fubara’s attempt to remove the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Hon. Martin Amaewhule, as a contributing factor to the ongoing political crisis.
In a quick rebuttal, the Rivers State PDP dismissed Wike’s accusations and urged him to seek legal recourse if dissatisfied with the election results. Sydney Gbara, the PDP’s Publicity Secretary in Rivers, questioned Wike’s sudden opposition to the election, given that he had previously supported holding it.
Gbara stated, “We are aware that no court judgement can stop an electoral process. What we know is that if you are not okay with an election, you can approach the court after it is conducted. So they should go to court.
“Let me take Nigerians back, conducting the local government election was one of the items on the presidential peace proclamation made by President Bola Tinubu in 2023. They (Wike and his supporters) have been willing to see the election conducted.
“At one point they even instructed the assembly that if Fubara refuses to conduct the election, he should be impeached. It is now surprising that when the RSIEC drew out the timetable for the election, they are now doing everything possible to stop it.
“This is where the conversation should start from and not whether there was a court judgement or not.
“In fact, it got to a point where the assembly elongated the tenure of the previous LG Chairmen and that was the first of its kind in the history of Nigerian democracy. Now the governor said he is ready for the election and the same people are now speaking from the other side of their mouths, saying the election should not be held.
“Where has Governor Fubara gone wrong? The Supreme Court has given judgement prohibiting caretaker committees and said every state should have elected LG Chairmen and they have a time frame of 90 days or else the state will not get allocation.
“Governor Fubara is just being obedient to the Supreme Court judgment. Anyone who wants to truncate the process does not mean well for Rivers people.”
“Innocent people were killed in cold blood all in a bid to frustrate the electoral process. The truth is that they came late because Rivers People have decided to move on with Fubara.”
