In a recent interview with Channels Television, Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, the National Coordinator of the South-South Leadership Forum, revealed that intervention by some Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leaders prevented Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara from resigning amidst escalating tensions with Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike.
Sara-Igbe highlighted Governor Fubara’s frustration with Wike’s dominance in the cabinet and control over state affairs, impacting the management of state funds and government operations.
Allegedly, Wike’s influence persisted even after leaving office, contributing to Fubara’s difficulties.
He stated, “Fubara opted to resign because apart from the way forces above him prevented him from asserting his independence, he didn’t have enough control over the state’s funds and had difficulty running his government. It took the intervention of some PDP leaders in the state before he reconsidered his position.
“What is the problem? Wike has come to tell the world that he was fighting Sim because Sim wanted to take his structure. What is the structure six months after elections; we are not close to elections, so what has structure got to do?
“Let me tell you about the structure; before Wike left the government, the state was making over N10bn internally generated revenue (monthly). When he left, the IGR came down to N6bn. The governor, a former Accountant General of the state, asked questions, and in the process, he engaged somebody to look at the books, and the commissioner of finance reported to Wike, and the former governor got angry. That is the structure.
“Secondly, the money coming from the federation account, Wike tied the money to one project or the other. So, when the money comes, it goes to the banks, and they collect theirs from it and pay the contractors.
“Of course, we didn’t even know the cost of the contracts, so when this governor felt, ‘how will I run a government when I don’t have the resources’, the minister became hostile to the governor, and the governor said, ‘Okay, let me resign if that is the case’. The PDP elders prevailed on him not to resign, thinking it would be messy.”
Speaking further, the former Security Adviser to former governor, Peter Odili emphasised, “As soon as that ended, I came on air and advised Nyesom Wike to leave this man alone to govern, allow him, even if he’s your son’. I even went as far as giving him references like the Sarakis. Dr Olusola Saraki brought the son, Bukola, to that seat but when their ideologies did not agree, the son told him to go and rest.”
READ ALSO: Tinubu Behind Nnamdi Kanu’s Detention, Not Judiciary —Aloy Ejimakor Alleges
He revealed, “You cannot make somebody a governor; a very important seat in Nigeria – that was the seat Odili sat and he almost became the president; that was the seat (former governor Rotimi) Amaechi sat and he connived with others to remove a sitting president; that is the seat Wike himself sat and became a superman – and you are asking somebody who is on that seat to be subservient. But the governor is still loyal.
He said the former governor knew about the defection of the 27 PDP Assembly lawmakers to the APC, “he (Wike) is a lawyer, he ought to know that such a move would cost the Assembly members their seats”.
When reminded that the lawmakers had said openly that their defection was not engineered by the minister, Sara-Igbe noted, “I am a father to some of them. I know their personal grievances, but they cannot do what they did without the support of their godfather. They believe Wike and Sim were having problems and because of that, they leveraged that to get at him (Sim).
“Even before the impeachment saga, some were threatening the governor that if he did rubbish they would get him removed from office. But the governor is a calm person, and I believe strongly that this is one man who loves Wike so much and has sacrificed so much for him before he became governor and even after.
“Today, the governor is not disposed to making trouble with the minister. He still sees it as a father-and-son relationship, but the minister, because of greed, is someone who wants to get everything, trying to take over the two parties, APC and PDP. When somebody is in control and wants power at all cost, it’s not the best, and that is what is leading to some of his problems.”
Sara-Igbe attributed the ongoing tensions to Wike’s desire for control over both APC and PDP, maintaining that it was difficult to make a governor subservient in the country. #PDP