Rivers Crisis: I was ambushed to sign Tinubu’s peace deal – Fubara

Rivers State Governor Siminalaye Fubara has claimed that he was ambushed to sign a peace accord with the camp of his predecessor and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.

The Governor disclosed this while speaking during a non-denominational thanksgiving service in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital, on Wednesday, October 30, 2024.

The event was organised to commemorate the thwarted attempt by pro-Wike lawmakers to impeach Fubara on October 30, 2023.

The Governor and the Minister have been on a warpath over control of the political structure of the oil-rich state.

The feud between the two former allies has snowballed into a full-blown political crisis in Rivers, leading to the polarization of the state House of Assembly and conflicting court orders and judgements.

Tinubu brokers peace deal between Wike and Fubara

Recall that President Bola Tinubu in December 2023 brokered a peace deal between the two warring parties after a meeting at the presidential villa in Abuja.

Fubara and Wike signed an eight-point resolution deal intended to bring an end to the feud.

Among others, the parties agreed that all impeachment proceedings against the governor and court cases should be withdrawn, but the crisis has persisted despite that.

Speaking on Wednesday, Fubara accused the Wike camp of violating the conditions stipulated in the peace agreement initiated by the President.

He said after withdrawing the cases in court, his opponents failed to fulfil their end of the bargain.

The Rivers Governor explained that he was ambushed with the peace deal by Wike’s camp, and not by Tinubu who initiated the deal.

“Because we are people of peace, if there is any advantage that was taken over us, it is because of our genuine interest in peace.

“The preacher said something about peace. I want to tell you that we went to Abuja and Mr President, knowing the importance of peace in Rivers state, brought out some conditions.

“We came back here to this state. First, we did everything that had to be done with those conditions.

“We went to court immediately, and withdrew our matters, but they did not. And you call yourself honourable when you cannot even obey simple instructions, and you blame it on Fubara.

“How is Fubara the problem? Fubara is not the problem! It was because we withdrew our matter, even the matter you filed, and we said we didn’t want to continue: you took advantage of it and went and got a judgment. Is it not fraud

“I discovered that I was being ambushed, not by the person who initiated the peace, but by people who believed that they were smarter.

“But you know such smartness, no matter what you call yourself, it is still foolishness before God.

“That is why, as they said, those other things that they are looking for, to make them feel they are coming back to life, we will not do it. So, let me see how they will come to life when we don’t do it,” Fubara said.

The Governor added that those who boasted that his administration would not last have failed.

“I can tell you, they said we are not going to last for one week, we are here, we have done one year plus.

“We are also doing one anniversary of their attack. They said those buccaneers will not leave as local government chairmen, today, we have 23 local government chairmen sitting here with us.

“They said their commissioners should resign so that we will be crippled. Today, we have more than 23 commissioners,” he said.