Fubara vs Wike: You Can’t Be Minister, Governor At The Same Time – Sagay

Professor Itse Sagay has urged the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to halt his ongoing political hostilities against Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, warning that the crisis is negatively impacting governance in the state.

Speaking with Saturday Telegraph in a telephone interview, Sagay criticized Wike for attempting to maintain control over the state while serving as a minister.

“Since the young man came to power, Wike has been breathing down on him and has refused to let him work,” Sagay stated. “This is unfortunate because when Wike himself was in power, nobody breathed down his neck the way he is doing to Fubara.”

Naija News reports that the feud between Wike and Fubara has led to a divided House of Assembly, prompting a Supreme Court intervention to restore order.

Following the apex court ruling, Governor Fubara dismissed all local government chairmen and councillors elected in the October elections and has written to the House of Assembly for a meeting to mend political divisions.

However, the lawmakers recently locked the Assembly gates to prevent him from presenting the state 2025 budget.

Despite the Supreme Court ruling favoring Wike’s political faction, Sagay criticized the ongoing power struggle, calling it detrimental to the state’s progress.

Sagay lamented that the crisis has distracted Governor Fubara from governance, preventing him from performing optimally.

“There is no gainsaying the fact that the governor has not been performing optimally because of the distraction this crisis has caused him,” he said. “There is a need for all gladiators to apply the brakes and allow peace to reign in the interest of the people of the state.”

He emphasized that Wike must recognize that he cannot simultaneously be both a minister and the de facto governor of Rivers State.

Addressing concerns about the reported absence of the state’s Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Amadi, and its impact on a possible impeachment process, Sagay dismissed any legal hurdles.

“Whenever a substantive chief judge of any state is away, the law allows for someone in the system to act in his place,” he explained. “So, if that is the case, the acting chief judge can take up the full responsibilities of the substantive chief judge.”