Governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are in a standoff with Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, over the ongoing crisis in the party’s Rivers State chapter.
The conflict centers on the control of the party’s structure in the state, which Wike has maintained through a recent congress, sidelining the current governor, Siminalayi Fubara.
Wike, the former governor of Rivers State, has declared that he and his allies will not relinquish control of the party structure, stating, “Not when we are alive will we allow anybody to take away the party structure from us.”
This has sparked a response from the PDP Governors Forum, which expressed its support for Governor Fubara, insisting that he deserves the same respect and privileges as other governors.
The conflict between Wike and Fubara, who was Wike’s chosen successor, escalated when Wike influenced the composition of the committee that conducted the Rivers State congress, which Fubara and his supporters largely boycotted.
Fubara has rejected the congress’s outcome and insists on his right to be treated equally with other governors within the party.
In an effort to mediate, the PDP’s Board of Trustees, led by Senator Adolphus Wabara, visited Governor Fubara and assured him that they would seek a constitutional resolution to the crisis. During the visit, Fubara reaffirmed his commitment to remain in the PDP, dismissing rumors of his defection to another party.
