Politics

Rivers crisis: PDP behind its woes – FredFish

Published

2 days ago

March 22, 2025

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Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Akwa Ibom and Chairman, PDP Advocates for Peace and Justice (PAPAJ), Dr Tom FredFish has joined many Nigerians to condemn the declaration of State of Emergency in Rivers State and subsequent suspension of the governor, Sim Fubara by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

In an exclusive interview with DAILY POST, FredFish described the President’s speech as a total reflection of how biased he is to the impasse in Rivers State, even as he blamed the leadership of the PDP, including Atiku Abubarkar over failure to wield the big stick against Nyesom Wike, Minister of FCT, whom he referred to as the bone of contention and had involved in various anti-party activities.

Excerpts:

What is your view about the State of Emergency declared by President Bola Tinubu in Rivers State? Is it in accordance with the law?

Well, the President, in his broadcast, claimed he acted according to the law, but what he has just demonstrated is the use of powers and the loopholes created by the Constitution to gain political capital by preparing for the 2027 election. The President was too quick to declare a State of Emergency in Rivers State.

As a chieftain of PDP, which is Fubara’s party, why was your party docile in resolving the problem between Wike and Fubara before now?

If you recall, I have made several alarming statements asking why the leaders of our party, the PDP, are quiet over the unruly behavior and actions of Wike. I had bemoaned Atiku Abubakar and the Chairman of the PDP BoT, Senator Wabara for not taking a stance. I also urged the PDP to suspend Wike or, at most, expel him from the party, but the party seems to have lost its voice to the defeat in 2023 and kept Wike perpetually in charge of the party.

There was certainly no way Wike would want to make peace with Fubara. Wike sees himself as a god that must be serviced with loyalty and allegiance and anyone who has a contrary view is seen as his enemy. So Wike, who sees himself as a demigod, will not want to settle with Fubara, who he thinks has challenged his godlike status in the state and country. Secondly, the party made several attempts to bring both men together, and each time, Wike ended up stalling the peace process. But I can state clearly that the PDP shot itself in the foot by accommodating Wike’s anti-party activities, as well as his attempts to cause chaos in the party.

Are you comfortable with the disinterest the party leadership and stakeholders showed in the matter so far?

I am very uncomfortable. The party has shown that it cannot pull itself back to order. Atiku has failed to play the role of an elder statesman. As long as Wike continues to remain in the PDP, the party will not know any peace. They all know what the problem is, but why the party does not have the political will to take the necessary action is what baffles me to date. Wike is a plague that must be uprooted.

Do you see APC taking over Rivers State in the nearest future or before the 2027 elections?

There is no way the APC can take over Rivers State. The party is very unpopular in the state, and the people have rejected such a party, as clearly shown in the 2023 Governorship election. And that’s why Wike, in connivance with the Abuja front, decided to hatch the crisis in the state. The plan of Wike and the 27 members of the House of Assembly was to impeach the governor and offload themselves into the APC. So when they realized that the people were ready to resist such anti-democratic acts, they resorted to the declaration of a state of emergency. President Tinubu’s speech is a total reflection of how biased the president is to the impasse. There is no sign that the APC can take over Rivers State through a democratic process.

Do you think Fubara and the other House of Assembly members would be called back at the end of the six months suspension?

Certainly, there is no reason they shouldn’t be recalled. Except if the President wants to suspend democracy.

What are the implications of the suspension on the people of Rivers State?

There are various implications to the suspension of the governor by the president. First, it shows that the president can use his powers for political gains when he deems fit. Second, it leaves a huge moral burden on the President, who was very fast to resolve the Lagos State House of Assembly crises but very slow and reluctant to act when it comes to Rivers State. Third, it shows that the tenets of our democracy are not truly democratic if the President can wake up and sack a democratic Governor and that the framers of our constitution erred with these loopholes created to make the president plan a coup against the people of a state. Fourth, it leaves a constitutional crisis, especially as it relates to the order for the stoppages of the State Allocation or funds by the Supreme Court to the CBN.

The Supreme Court said that CBN should withhold Rivers’ allocation and release the funds when a proper Local Government election is conducted. Does the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Admiral Ibokette Ibas, have any legal backing to conduct the Local Government election in Rivers State? And will CBN continue to withhold Rivers allocation till Sim Fubara, who has a democratic mandate, returns back in 6 months to conduct LGA election? How will the state run without funds? The Nigerian economy will likely suffer with the renewed bombing of oil facilities in the Niger Delta. The return of hostilities, militancy, and oil bunkering would likely resurface with the sceneries affecting the income of the nation. Lastly, the people of Rivers State will lose in all these episodes.

What are the decisive, urgent actions that the PDP is expected to take?

The PDP needs to expel Wike immediately. Send him packing. After all, Wike has violated the party’s constitution by not showing concern for the party and its affairs. His recent revoking of the PDP secretariat is a sign that the former governor has declared war on his party. He should be shown the way out for peace to return to the party. If the PDP must survive, the party needs to be decisive as it pertains to Wike. They should also make strong statements condemning the President’s actions and expelling the 27 Rivers House of Assembly members for attempting to impeach the governor against the party’s position. Discipline must be enshrined in the PDP if the party must move forward.

Politics

Fubara makes first public appearance since suspension

Published

12 hours ago

March 23, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

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There are reports that the suspended Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, is attending a Sunday service at Salvation Ministries in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.

This development follows widespread speculation regarding his whereabouts since President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency last Tuesday.

Amid uncertainty, some reports suggested that Governor Fubara had relocated to the Bayelsa State Government House to reside for the six-month duration of the emergency.

However, his public appearance today provides clarity on his location.

President Tinubu had suspended the governor, his deputy and all elected members of the state House of Assembly over a prolonged political crisis in the state, citing a Brando of law and order.

Politics

People’s Democratic Party (PDP) elders like Chief Bode George, should be blamed for the party’s failure to pay Ground Rent for 28 years, which is the reason for the revocation of the PDP’s national secretariat in Abuja, and not the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.

Published

18 hours ago

March 23, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

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People’s Democratic Party (PDP) elders like Chief Bode George, should be blamed for the party’s failure to pay Ground Rent for 28 years, which is the reason for the revocation of the PDP’s national secretariat in Abuja, and not the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.

Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Public Communication and New Media, Lere Olayinka, said in a statement in Abuja on Saturday, that it was funny that Chief Bode George, who was in the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) that failed to conclude purchase of the Wadata Plaza National Secretariat of the PDP, could come to national television to say “Wike has crossed the red line by revoking the PDP’s national secretariat in Abuja.”

Bode George, had said during an interview on a television station on Friday, that Wike’s action was an open declaration of war against the PDP.

Responding, Olayinka said it was painful that elders like Chief Bode George, could chose to play the ostrich on a matter so glaring as the revocation of 4,794 land titles for not paying Ground Rent for as much as 43 years.

He asked; “Why didn’t the PDP pay Ground Rent for 20 years on its Plot No. 243 national secretariat (under construction), which is the only property belonging to the party among the 4,794 revoked titles? How’s government’s enforcement of the consequences of land title owners’ refusal to pay Ground Rent declaration of war? Should the FCTA under Wike have treated PDP differently from the 4,794 owners of land titles that were revoked over failure to pay Ground Rent?”

While clarifying that the Wadata Plaza property being used as Secretariat by the PDP was not owned by the party, Olayinka said the property belonged to Senator Samaila Mamman Kurfi, who bought it from Wadata Enterprises Nigeria Limited.

“The PDP offered to buy the Wadata Plaza property in 2005, and when the Minister’s Consent was sought, the party was asked to pay N26.9 million. The money was never paid.

“The party wrote a letter to Malam Nasir El-Rufai, the FCT Minister then, to waive the payment, claiming that it lacked the financial capacity to pay, but he (El-Rufai) insisted the party must pay.

“El-Rufai, who insisted PDP must do the right thing by paying the necessary fees to the government was a member of the party then, and Chief Bode George, who was in the PDP NWC, did not go to national television to accuse him (El-Rufai) of declaring war against the party. And if the owner of did not pay ordinary N2.8 million as 28 years Ground Rent, who is to blame?
On the PDP national secretariat at Central Area, is it the fault of Wike that a mere N7.6 million, was owed as 20 years Ground Rent despite that over N21 billion was raised in 2014 for the completion of the building?”
While counseling Chief Bode George, to start functioning like an objective elder that he should be, the FCT Minister’s Spokesperson said “what should have been done was to seek information, rather than going on television to advertise hatred against a Minister who is simply doing his jobs without looking at people’s faces
.If Chief Bode George had sought necessary information and refrained himself from acting out of hatred for Wike, it would have been known to him that also affected by the revocation were government owned institutions like Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Borno State Government, Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), National Universities Commission (NUC), Kaduna State Government, Nigerian Port Authority (NPA), News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Federal Ministry of Environment, Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company, University of Calabar and Nigerian Postal Service and Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).

“And like I asked earlier, if Chief Bode George were to be the FCT Minister, would he have treated PDP differently from the other 4,793 land title owners?”

On loyalty and commitment to the PDP, Olayinka said the results in Wike’s Rivers State and Chief Bode George’s Lagos State from 1998 till date are clear for everyone to see and used as yardstick.

Politics

GOVERNOR UZODIMMA PRESENTS STAFF OF OFFICE TO 66 TRADITIONAL RULERS IN IMO STATE, CHARGES THEM FOR PROACTIVE LEADERSHIP

Published

18 hours ago

March 23, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

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Imo State Governor, Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodimma CON, has officially presented the Staff of Office to 66 traditional rulers across various autonomous communities in the state. The ceremony, held in Imo State Government House, Owerri, marked the formal recognition of the monarchs by the state government.

During his address, Governor Uzodimma reaffirmed that the state government does not interfere in the selection of traditional rulers, stressing that only those duly chosen by their people are recognized. He urged the monarchs to take an active role in addressing security concerns in their communities.

“I urge you to take responsibility for the security of your communities. Any traditional ruler found to be complicit in acts of insecurity will be dethroned. Work closely with the youth, defend your people, and do not allow yourselves to be blackmailed,” he warned.

The governor also charged the traditional rulers to collaborate with the government in promoting peace and development, emphasizing their role as custodians of culture and stability.
“Your job is to support the government in power and contribute to the progress of your communities. I congratulate you all and pray that God grants you wisdom to lead effectively,” he added.

The event was attended by top government officials, community leaders, and well-wishers, underscoring the significance of traditional institutions in governance and societal development.