Rivers State Crisis Festers as Reconciliation Negotiations Between Wike, Fubara Stalls

The political impasse in Rivers State is anything but over, as talks towards a peace pact between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, stalled.

Two weeks after the National Assembly proposed the establishment of a peace committee to broker peace among the belligerent actors, nothing important has emerged.

The crisis, which led President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency in March, witnessed Governor Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu, and all the lawmakers in the state suspended for six months. Vice-Admiral Ibok Ibas (rtd) was appointed Sole Administrator, and even though the request of the President was approved by the National Assembly, the planned peace committee is yet to be formed.

Sources in Port Harcourt, the capital city, attribute the failure of reconciliation efforts to the perceived bias of the main Ijaw and Rivers leaders, who sided with one party or the other during the crisis. “Those who could have led us out of this crisis have taken sides, and thus lack the credibility to summon the two parties to a roundtable,” an insider revealed.

The source accused former President Goodluck Jonathan and other players of giving up their neutral role, further broadening the gap. “Former President Jonathan, who was meant to chair the peace talks, was intimidated into joining Governor Fubara, while the Ijaw National Congress (INC) led by Prof. Benjamin Okaba was in its approach biased,” the source added.

The Global President of the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC), Jonathan Lokpobiri, was disappointed at the way some leaders among the Ijaws have handled the crisis. “Had we applied wisdom in trying to contain this crisis, we would not be here now,” Lokpobiri said. “Emotional reactions have no space in mature political disputes. Sometimes, wisdom trumps the arms we think we have accumulated.”

Meanwhile, Kennedy Tonjo-West, President of the Movement for Izon Ethnic Nationality Development (MOSIEND), has offered to help initiate peace efforts, stating that his group has maintained neutrality throughout the crisis. “We want Rivers to return to a process of reconciliation without any delay,” he said.

The estrangement between Wike and Fubara, which began following the 2023 general elections, despite the fact that Wike had at first defended the governor, has not been addressed yet. Governor Fubara has returned to his personal residence in Port Harcourt, while the majority of the suspended lawmakers loyal to Wike are reportedly abroad on vacation. With the crisis yet to brew, the people of Rivers State wait for the crisis to be over, which has paralyzed the state.