Fubara Invited Violence Into Rivers State; Says Wike, Gives Reason
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has blamed the ongoing political unrest and violence in Rivers State on the state governor, Siminalayi Fubara.
Wike, who was a guest on the Channels TV Politics Today on Tuesday night, said Governor Fubara invited anarchy to the state from the moment he publicly declared that he would not honour a subsisting order of the Federal High Court stopping him from conducting council elections in the state last Saturday.
Wike, the immediate former governor of the state, added that the non-involvement of the Nigeria Police Force and the security operatives in the council polls created an avenue for hoodlums to operate and unleash terror in the state.
Wike said: “What is important is that when there is violence, when there is instability, it is for you to ask questions about what has led to that violence.
“What has led to the instability? What has led to the destruction? I’ve said when I was a governor; I always obeyed the rule of law.
“You had a governor saying that our state is turning into a state of anarchy where people do not obey the rule of law. What is obeying the rule of law? You must respect, you must obey the judgment of the court.
“You must not take the law into your own hands; it does not matter how you see that judgement. The moment you do not obey the court judgement, you are inviting anarchy. You are inviting violence.
“Was the destruction done before now? The point I am making is that a governor going on national television, not local television to tell the world that ‘I will not obey court judgement’. In fact, to crown it all, he said nowhere in the judgment did the court say that the election should not hold.
“He went as far as to say ‘I don’t need police before I conduct elections. I don’t need security agencies before I conduct elections. I don’t need the protection of lives and properties.’ When somebody says I don’t need the police, what is he saying? I’m inviting violence, hoodlums will take the opportunity since the police will not be involved.”
The political landscape in Rivers State has taken a tense turn, with a rift emerging between Wike and Fubara over control of the state’s political structure.
This power struggle began after Fubara took office, with Wike reportedly seeking to maintain his influence over the state’s governance, while Fubara aims to establish his own authority.
President Bola Tinubu intervened and helped to broker a peace deal between the two politicians but it failed to yield a positive result.
