PANDEF Confirms Plan To Hold Peace Talks Between Fubara, Wike

The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has stepped in to mediate between Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, in a bid to resolve their ongoing political dispute.

This peace initiative, which aims to address the tensions exacerbated by the political conflict, comes after President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in the state on March 18, suspending Fubara, his deputy, and all members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

Naija News reports that the Chairman of PANDEF, Godknows Igali, confirmed that the forum had arranged for a peace meeting between the two political figures.

Speaking on The Morning Brief on Channels TV, Igali explained that PANDEF had approached a southern governor, unaffiliated with the conflict, to host the crucial meeting.

He stated, “We are a body that is formed to promote dialogue, to promote the reign of peace in the region and also defending, of course, the people. A template has been established, and that template is that we go and talk about how we can arrive at a peaceful resolution to this problem.”

Igali noted that PANDEF would have taken a more reactive approach if there had been no opportunity for dialogue.

“If that option was not there, PANDEF would have reacted totally differently,” he emphasized, adding that the mediation process was already showing promising progress.

Describing the steps PANDEF took to facilitate communication between the two sides, Igali explained that the forum had previously encountered resistance from both parties, who were unwilling to engage in discussions.

However, the situation has now shifted, with both factions showing more willingness to come to the table.

“The committee of elders succeeded in talking to the two sides.

“They met people who were very close to the governor. They met with the governor himself twice. Then they also met with the very close people to the minister of the federal capital territory, and the two sides agreed that, okay, let us arrange for the two principals to meet at a neutral ground,” Igali explained

Igali revealed that PANDEF had already identified a neutral location for the peace talks, with the backing of a southern governor.

“We had already started working on that, on a place where both of them can meet face to face. I can put it out that we had approached one of the governors in the south who is very detached from this matter to host, and he had accepted to host,” he said.