• Wike faults Fubara’s termination of 10,000 jobs for youths
• FCT minister will be under Fubara if he joins APC, says Ibrahim
• PDP boss insists Wike, Fayose, others’ expulsion will stand
The immediate past Caretaker Committee Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State, Robinson Ewor, has expressed concern over “the precarious state” of the 2026 budget of the state.
During his visit to Rivers’ local councils, Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, yesterday, alleged that Governor Siminalayi Fubara cancelled an employment procedure put in place by his administration to employ 10,000 youths.
Meanwhile, Director of Information of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bala Ibrahim, disclosed that Wike will be under Fubara if he defects to the party.
This was just as South-South PDP Chairman, Emmanuel Ogidi, insisted that the suspension of Wike, ex-governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose and others stands.
Ewor lamented that Rivers had yet to have an appropriated budget for the 2026 fiscal year, despite the passage of time. Following the renewed political crisis involving Fubara, Wike and the Martins Amaewhule-led House of Assembly, the State Executive Council (SEC) only succeeded in approving a proposed N1.854 trillion budget for the 2026 fiscal year on Friday, January 2, 2026.
Further legislative deliberations on the budget, tagged ‘Budget of Resilience for Growth and Development’ have yet to take place. With the collapse of rival legislative factions into a single House aligned with Wike’s camp and led by Amaewhule, the governor, observers say, can no longer bypass the Assembly on budgetary matters.
The governor’s Special Adviser on Economic Matters and Social Development, Prof Peter Medee, had earlier disclosed that the SEC approved an aggregate budget size of N1.854 trillion for the provision of goods and services in 2026.
Speaking yesterday during a “thank you” visit by Wike to Ahoada East Local Council of the state, Ewor expressed concern that the governor might have been spending public funds illegally.
In his remarks, Wike said the visit was to thank the people for voting President Bola Tinubu in the 2023 general election and to further mobilise them to do the same in 2027.
WIKE, speaking at Ahoada main Town, during the Renewed Hope Family’s ‘Thank you visit’ said his successor (Fubara), upon resumption, cancelled what could have helped the youths of the state.
“I employed 10,000Rivers youths. The person we handed over power to cancelled that job,” he said, recalling that when he was the governor, Rivers was the envy of other states of the federation.
However, Ibrahim said Wike would be given a seat in the APC if he decides to join. In an interview yesterday, Ibrahim said: “He will be given a seat. There will be a place for him. It’s a choice for him to be under Fubara. If you follow, you will be followed; but if you don’t follow, nobody is going to follow you.
“When he was the governor, he was followed; now that he is not the governor he must follow. You can’t carry the position of leadership after vacating the seat. He can’t get what he wants all the time, there are times that if you go against the laid down regulations, you can’t get what you want.”
DURING an appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, Ogidi said: “Nigerians know the truth. They (Wike, Fayose, Anyanwu, others) are just making noise. They’ve been expelled.”
The PDP, during its national convention in November, expelled Wike, Fayose, Samuel Anyanwu and eight others over what the party described as “anti-party” activities.
The convention, held in Ibadan, Oyo State, cited activities it described as inconsistent with the party’s collective interest as reasons for the move. It later issued a certificate of expulsion to the affected persons. However, the group in the PDP loyal to Wike said it expelled Governor Seyi Makinde and others, who backed the expulsion.
