From Victor Osula, Abuja
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has weighed in on the political crisis rocking Rivers State, saying that calls for reconciliation must he based on mutual respect and loyalty.
“The Assembly members have shown where they stand. You cannot deny your roots. We must be grateful,” he said.
He questioned why only lawmakers were expected to be loyal while Governor Fubara, whom he helped install, was not reciprocating.
“You want them to obey, but you don’t want to obey? Why should loyalty be one-sided?”
Wike accused Fubara of disrespecting elders who supported his emergence, including Chief Ferdinand Alabraba, a key backer of his candidacy.
“This elder statesman nearly collapsed while pleading for an Ijaw governor. Now, you insult him?”
He also slammed Fubara for attacking legal heavyweights like OCJ Okocha and Chief Sergeant Awuse.
“This boy—yes, he is a boy—abused respected elders. A man who made money before he was born. His children attended the best schools, but now he can’t go back to him,” Wike said.
When asked if he would initiate peace talks, Wike said Fubara had never sought reconciliation.
“Does he think I have a role to play? Has he ever called me? You can take a horse to the stream, but you can’t force it to drink,” he stated, adding that the governor’s arrogance is to blame for his struggles.
“If he was a good person, he would have sought guidance from.
Speaking during a media chat in Abuja on Wednesday, Wike cautioned members of the Rivers State House of Assembly against any rash moves but maintained that impeachment is a constitutional provision and should not be sensationalized.
“If you have committed an offence worthy of impeachment, what’s wrong with it? Is impeachment a crime? It is in the constitution,” Wike stated.
The former Rivers governor dismissed claims that removing Fubara could lead to chaos, describing such fears as baseless.
“I have heard people say, ‘Oh, if they impeach him, there will be a breakdown of law and order.’ That’s rubbish!” he said.
Wike also brushed aside concerns that Ijaw militants could resort to violence if Fubara is removed, arguing that no ethnic group has a monopoly on destruction.
“Which Ijaw? Niger Delta militants? Rubbish! Who are the militants? Who told you Ogoni people cannot blow up pipelines? Who told you Ikwerre people cannot blow up pipelines? Why do we arrogate power to certain groups?” he asked.
He further pointed out the contradiction of Ijaw leader, Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo), handling a pipeline security contract while the same group allegedly threatens to destroy them.
“They gave an Ijaw man, Tompolo, a contract to protect pipelines, and now they are threatening to blow them up? That’s nonsense! The moment I hear that, to hell with it! How dare you threaten a country?”
Wike accused some government figures of orchestrating militant threats for political gain.
“These are political games by people in government. You appoint an NDDC MD, and they say, ‘We will blow pipelines.’ What kind of country is this?”
The FCT Minister dismissed the notion that Ijaw people dominate Niger Delta politics, insisting that they remain a minority in most states outside Bayelsa.
“In Akwa Ibom, Ijaw cannot be governor. In Delta, Ijaw is a minority. In Rivers and Edo, they are minorities who have benefitted from others,” he said.
