With the expiration of the six-month state of emergency in Rivers State and the resolution of the political crisis in the state, will Governor Siminalayi Fubara; Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike; members of the state House of Assembly and other political actors set aside their past grievances and embrace genuine reconciliation for the development of the state? Ejiofor Alike asks
The six-month state of emergency declared in Rivers State ended last Wednesday when President Bola Tinubu directed suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara; his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Nma Odu, and members of state House of Assembly to return to their desks on the following day, being Thursday, September 18, 2025.
Tinubu had imposed a six-month emergency rule on March 18, 2025 and had appointed a former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas as the administrator of the state.
Rivers State was plunged into a protracted political crisis following attempts by Fubara to extricate himself from the political structure that produced him and assert his independence.
These attempts had set him on a collision course with his godfather and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, who is the leader of the political structure that produced him as governor.
Fubara, who demonstrated a lack of desperation for power throughout the crisis, aligned himself to other political leaders and statesmen in the state, who cheered him on to continue to deliver good governance without distractions.
In his bid to regain control of the political structure in the state, the FCT minister maintained a firm grip of the state lawmakers, whom he used effectively to battle the governor to a submission.
The December 2023 eight-point peace deal between the governor and the FCT minister brokered by President Tinubu, which was skewed against Fubara, had created the suspicion that Tinubu was on Wike’s side and cast doubt on the neutrality of the president in the Rivers State political crisis.
The last straw that broke the camel’s back in the governor’s camp was the 62-page Supreme Court’s judgment delivered in February 2025, which indicted the governor for acts of gross misconduct.
Many political analysts believe the six-month emergency rule declared by Tinubu saved Fubara from outright impeachment by the state lawmakers.
Fubara acknowledged Tinubu’s intervention in his statewide address on Friday, saying “the President graciously brokered peace during this period, and we all accepted it, though not without the hard lessons learnt during the emergency rule.”
He expressed deep appreciation to Tinubu for what he described as a “fatherly intervention” that restored full democratic governance to the state.
After the lifting of the emergency rule, the state lawmakers held their first plenary on Thursday, September 18, but the governor was curiously absent.
His absence fuelled apprehension among his massive supporters who gathered in their large numbers at the Government House in Port Harcourt from 6.30am to 6pm, without any information on his whereabouts.
There were insinuations that the conditions handed over to him may have made his office uninspiring to warrant any immediate resumption.
But the governor shocked his critics when he staged a dramatic return to office on Friday and was welcomed by thousands of his supporters and admirers.
However, many believe Fubara’s hands have been tied to his back in the politics of the state.
The governor is believed to have been handed over the short end of the stick, having been robbed of the opportunity to appoint the members and heads of boards and agencies, and also conduct local government elections to enable his loyalists to take over the political structures at the grassroots.
In his farewell address, Ibas had stated that his six-month tenure delivered “milestones of progress,” including the conduct of local government elections, and the reconstitution of statutory boards.
In their first plenary held last Thursday, the state lawmakers had called on Fubara to immediately forward the list of commissioner-nominees to them for screening and confirmation.
However, the unfolding political events in the state have also lent credence to speculations that a prepared list of commissioner-nominees had since been handed over to the governor for transmission to the lawmakers.
A former governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last general election in the state, Tonye Cole, may have aptly captured the situation, when he said that the governor would have “zero” powers when he resumes.
Cole, who spoke on a television programme, stated that Rivers State has a governor who would not be able to exercise his full authority as an elected leader.
He advised Fubara to find a way to reach an agreement with Wike, to allow him (Fubara) to take certain decisions as an elected governor.
His part, Wike, who is the greatest beneficiary of the current political situation in the state, said the lifting of the state of emergency by Tinubu has once again demonstrated his total commitment to peace and sustenance of democracy in the country.
While urging all stakeholders in the state to work together harmoniously in the collective interest of the people, Wike also cautioned troublemakers, especially fifth columnists who were always seeking to benefit from the crisis to stay away from the state.
Apart from Wike, who has regained control of the state, Tinubu is also a winner as he has now gained significant political ground in Rivers, a state previously dominated by the opposition.
Previously, Fubara’s loyalists who had defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All People’s Party were in control of the local government areas after the October 5, 2024, local government election in the state.
But after the local government elections conducted by the Ibas on August 30, 2025, APC candidates won in 20 out of 23 local government areas.
With Wike’s loyalists in charge of all the LGAs, APC’s chances of victory in the state in the 2027 elections have been brightened.
Meanwhile, Fubara’s supporters and some of the political leaders appear to have lost out, as they may be locked out of political relevance in the state.
With what seems to be winner-takes-all terms of settlement of the crisis, Fubara ‘s loyalists appear not to have been accommodated in the current deal between the governor and the FCT minister.
However, in his address, the governor addressed the concerns of his supporters and assured them that “not everything is irretrievably lost” and that opportunities remain ahead.
The governor stated that “the costliest peace is cheaper than the cheapest war,” stressing the need to build a more prosperous Rivers State.
He added that the responsibility now lies with leaders to put aside personal interests and pursue the common good.
The events of the next few months will reveal if these political actors will shrug off the broken trust, set aside their past grievances, accommodate Fubara’s loyalists and work together in the spirit of genuine reconciliation.
