Wike Declares Backing Tinubu Won’t Guarantee Fubara 2027 Governorship Ticket
Former Rivers State Governor and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has declared that backing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will not automatically secure Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara a ticket for the 2027 governorship election.
Wike made the statement over the weekend during a visit to Emohua Local Government Area, in what is widely seen as a new escalation in his ongoing political feud with Fubara.
The two leaders have been at odds for years over control of Rivers State politics, a conflict that previously led to the burning of the State House of Assembly complex and prompted President Tinubu to declare a six-month state of emergency in the state.
The crisis also resulted in the defection of 27 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers loyal to Wike to the All Progressives Congress (APC), triggering multiple court battles. Additionally, several caretaker committee chairmen aligned with Fubara defected to the Action People’s Party (APP) ahead of local government elections and went on to win their seats.
During the height of the standoff, President Tinubu reportedly brokered a peace agreement between Wike and Fubara, with sources claiming that one condition of the settlement was that Fubara would not contest the 2027 governorship election.
Following the end of the state of emergency in September and the reinstatement of the deputy governor and lawmakers, political observers expected calm to return.
Earlier this month, Fubara officially defected from the PDP to the APC after meeting President Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. He later announced his defection at a Government House event in Port Harcourt, pledging his support for the President, days after some state assembly members had also joined the APC.
Responding to Fubara’s defection, Wike downplayed the significance of such support, stressing that aligning with Tinubu does not guarantee electoral success.
“The issue is not whether you support Tinubu or not. That decision was taken long ago. Nobody needs to come here to tell me they are for Tinubu. Supporting Tinubu will not earn anyone a ticket,” Wike said.
He added, “The Rivers State House of Assembly has done its job. They were the first in Nigeria to declare that, on your mandate, they would stand. So the Tinubu issue is no longer an issue. Who in Rivers State is not for Tinubu? That alone cannot guarantee anyone a ticket.
“The same people who recently made public declarations are the same ones who took the Assembly to court seeking to have their seats declared vacant. All those now chanting ‘on your mandate we stand’ failed when it mattered most. They could not vote for Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“We have never wavered in our support for Bola Ahmed Tinubu. When we take decisions, we do so out of conviction, not because of what others are doing.”
