The lingering political crisis in Rivers State has been brought to an end following a high-level reconciliation meeting convened by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The meeting successfully reunited the suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his predecessor and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
The resolution was achieved during a closed-door meeting held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Thursday, June 26, 2025. President Tinubu intervened after months of escalating tensions between key political actors in the state.
The development was confirmed on Friday morning by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), accompanied by a video clip from the meeting, Onanuga wrote: “Tinubu brokers Rivers peace talks. President Bola Tinubu hosted a reconciliation meeting on Thursday night at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, bringing together all the figures in the Rivers State political crisis.”
The political feud between Governor Fubara and Wike had intensified over the control of power in Rivers State, leading to instability in the State House of Assembly. The situation escalated into a legal battle, which the Supreme Court eventually ruled in favour of the lawmakers.
However, the court’s decision triggered further unrest, with renewed threats of impeachment against the Governor by the Assembly members, allegedly backed by Wike. The growing tension prompted President Tinubu to declare a State of Emergency in March 2025.
As part of the emergency measures, the President suspended Governor Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the House of Assembly. He also appointed retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas as the State Administrator to oversee governance and restore order.
With Thursday’s peace meeting, the Federal Government has signaled a new chapter of stability in Rivers State, as all parties agreed to work together in the interest of peace and development.
Fubara May Resign Soon as Governor
THE SMART THING TO DO- My Opinion
Some credible sources close to suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara have told our correspondent that Fubara is contemplating resigning, adding that the governor is allegedly waiting for his reinstatement first. The sources who refused to be mentioned in print because they do not have the governor’s authorization to reveal such to the public strongly informed our correspondent that the Governor had said severally in private that he will resign, saying that such move will enable him stay away from the bitter politics in the state and country.
“The governor is thinking of resigning as governor but he wouldn’t want to do it under suspension as it may seem to justify President Bola Tinubu’s decision of suspending him and it will also serve as a big disappointment to the PDP governors who went to court to challenge his suspension.
“To the Governor, he thinks he will be better of if he resigns to prove that his life does not depend on any political office as he had repeatedly said he is no longer interested in the governorship seat of the state,” one of the sources said. Fubara was suspended on March 18, 2025 by the president for an initial period of six months under the guise of an emergency rule which the president declared on Rivers State.
The development led to the emergence of retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas as the state Sole Administrator which was widely condemned by many who viewed the action of the president as undemocratic. Some PDP governors who feared that the emergency rule can be made against their states if left unchallenged, dragged the Federal government to court, asking the apex court to determine whether the President has the powers to suspend a democratically elected Governor or not but the Supreme Court is yet to deliver its verdict on it.
The two arrow heads of the political crisis in Rivers State, the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike and Fubara have publicly shown that the rift between them had paved the way for dialogues as the duo had often been spotted at Wike’s residence. Ibas has been running the state as though Fubara does not exist as a suspended governor but as a removed governor.
Despite repeated protests, calling for Fubara’s immediate reinstatement, the executive and the legislative arms of the federal government had given their full backing to Ibas to run the state as the number one citizen of the state. It is no longer news that all the political appointees of Fubara had been suspended by Ibas while the over a trillion naira budget raised by the sole administrator was presented before the National Assembly by the president.
Some also believed that the leadership of the state has been politically captured from Fubara and crippled in a manner that would be difficult for him to be in full control of the state, if reinstated.
