IN his bid to return to office, suspended Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara reportedly met with President Bola Tinubu in London last week, according to Africa Report.
Two senior aides to the president reportedly confirmed that the two leaders met and discussed issues bothering on the Rivers State politics.
The ICIR reported that Tinubu suspended Fubara on March 18 following a political impasse in the oil-rich state.
Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, have been at loggerheads over who controls the PDP structure in the state since 2023, with President Tinubu’s efforts to resolve the stalemate yielding no result.
The ICIR reported that the crisis deepened when 27 lawmakers loyal to the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) defected from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), reigniting the power struggle between Governor Fubara and Wike.
The crisis further escalated after the suspended governor declared the seats of 27 lawmakers vacant and dismissed all 23 local government chairmen elected under Wike, stating that their tenures had ended.
He followed his action with the conduct of a local government election on October 5, affirming his authority on the state’s politics.
Amid the crisis, pro-Fubara thugs allegedly set the State House of Assembly on fire. The action was followed by an attempted impeachment of Fubara.
The suspended governor thereafter conducted the state affairs with a splinter group of four lawmakers loyal to him, including approval of appointments, lawmaking, and budget approval.
The crisis peaked with the Supreme Court’s ruling that ordered the recognition of the 27 lawmakers by the governor, including payments of all their withheld salaries and allowances, among others.
Wike, during a media chat on Wednesday, March 12, said Fubara should be impeached if he had committed an impeachable offence.
He insisted that for peace to return between the legislature and the state executive, Fubara must represent the 2025 budget to the State Assembly led by Martin Amaewhule, and also resubmit the names of his commissioners for clearance.
However, the drama escalated at the State House of Assembly complex on Wednesday, March 12, when Fubara arrived at the quarters for the presentation of the 2025 budget, only to find the entrance gate locked.
A few days after the unfolding drama, Tinubu declared a state of emergency, suspended Fubara for six months, and appointed a sole administrator to oversee the state.
Since then, the declaration of emergency rule has sparked protests and attracted condemnations from many Nigerians.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.