Fubara shun Wike-backed state congress

Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Professor Ngozi Odu, and the three members of the State House of Assembly failed to turn up at a state congress of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Port Harcourt on Saturday. The congress is reportedly backed by the governor’s erstwhile godfather, Nysome Wike.

The congress, which was supervised by representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), led by the state resident electoral commissioner (REC), representatives of the security agencies, and the national working committee (NWC) of the PDP, also had the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Wike, in attendance, but the governor and his deputy were a no-show.

Fubara’s absence gave a clear indication that the rift within the party is nowhere near its end, despite the peace mission of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the PDP, led by its chairman, Senator Adolphus Wabara, to resolve the lingering crisis in the Rivers State chapter of the party.

Speaking at the event, Wike said he could cause a crisis in any state if its governor wanted to interfere in the political affairs of Rivers State.

“If the governor said he does not want us, will you kill yourself? Will you run away from the party you built? We are the party members and we have taken over our party. The way we did it, how we did it in 2023, the same God will be with us in 2027.

“Let nobody be intimidated. I know how it is when you have worked hard, and at the end of the day, you are pushed away. I know how bad you feel. But again, it is not every business you enter into that you make a profit. See this one as one of those businesses where you invested and lost. But that will not stop you from continuing to work hard to invest in the future and make your profit.

“They said we are finished. They are finished. Let me assure all of you that not while we are alive will anybody take the structure of this party away from us. I hear that some governors said they will take the structure of the party and give it to somebody. I pity those governors because I will put fire in their state. When God has given you peace, and you say you don’t want peace, then whatever you see, you take. I hear they made some money from this signature bonus and as such they want to interfere in my state. Prepare to face whatever comes because I have the capacity.

“I can do the same thing in your state. Whether you are from Bauchi, I don’t give a damn. Your hands will get burnt. You will never sleep in your state. You will see political crises in your state. When I start, don’t say I am the one destroying PDP.
“I hear these unstable characters, we know they are joining APP. Let them wait, when it is time, let them face us. They thought I would come to beg them. Let them go and see what is happening in Abuja. If today I say I will move to another party, it will be a tsunami. We have said I will remain in PDP.”

The congress produced Chief Chukuemeka Aaron as the state chairman of the PDP.