In a startling revelation, Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike has disclosed that he had pushed for the complete removal of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara before President Bola Tinubu intervened with a state of emergency declaration.
Speaking during an Abuja media briefing on Friday, Wike admitted his dissatisfaction with the emergency measure imposed on March 18, 2025, which suspended Fubara, his deputy, and the state legislature while installing a sole administrator. However, he argued the presidential action ultimately preserved Fubara’s position.
“The governor was already finished politically before the president stepped in,” Wike stated. “I wanted Fubara completely out, but the state of emergency declaration actually saved him from that fate.”
The former Rivers governor, who has been at the center of the state’s prolonged political crisis, suggested Fubara’s supporters should be grateful to Tinubu. “They should be praising the president daily, even offering to wash his feet for this intervention,” Wike remarked pointedly.
While claiming readiness for reconciliation talks, Wike accused Fubara’s advisers of blocking peace efforts. “His handlers keep discouraging him from embracing dialogue,” the minister alleged, without providing specific evidence.
The comments mark Wike’s most direct admission about his role in the crisis since Tinubu’s controversial intervention, which opposition figures have condemned as unconstitutional. Political observers note the revelation exposes deeper layers of the power struggle between the former allies, with Wike now positioning the emergency declaration as an act of political mercy rather than punishment.
The suspended governor’s camp has yet to respond to these latest claims as Rivers State remains under federal administration, with no clear timeline for restoring democratic governance.
