Elder statesman and Leader of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief Edwin Clark, has issued a fervent appeal to President Bola Tinubu, urging him to intervene and restore order in the recent tumultuous developments in Rivers State.
Chief Clark made this impassioned plea during a media briefing held in Abuja on Monday.
His call for action comes against the backdrop of concerning political events that have transpired in Rivers State over the past 48 hours. Chief Clark voiced his deep concern, stating, “I have been greatly disturbed by the reported developments in Rivers State in the last 24 hours.
I have been reliably informed that there is a plot to unlawfully remove Governor Siminalaye Fubara of Rivers State, who has spent only about five months in office.”
Chief Clark went on to detail that the alleged conspiracy involves the former Governor of Rivers State and the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mr. Nyesom Wike. Their purported intention is to unseat the Governor, pressure his deputy, Professor Ngozi Odu, into resigning, and install the Speaker of the House of Assembly, another Ikwerre individual, as the new Governor of the State.
Clark sternly emphasized, “Let me warn strongly, we won’t allow that to happen! President Bola Tinubu must call Nyesom Wike and the security agencies in Rivers State to order, to avert any untold crisis in Rivers State.”
He further highlighted the alarming incident in which the Rivers State House of Assembly’s chambers were set on fire and the Governor was tear-gassed and threatened when he visited the Assembly Complex to assess the damage.
In defense of constitutional democracy, Chief Clark stressed, “We are not in a barbaric state where people can do whatever they like; we are in a democracy, and the tenets of constitutional democracy must be upheld by all.”
He also drew attention to the potential dire consequences of such a crisis on the stability of the Niger Delta Region and the national economy, emphasizing that the actions of Governor Fubara were raising questions about his refusal to be “remote controlled.”
“Rivers people have suffered enough political crises. The state should not be allowed to degenerate again into its dark past, and the Niger Delta Region by extension. The consequences would be dire for the stability of the region and the National Economy.
“What has Governor Fubara done wrong? Refusing to be further ‘remote controlled’?
“Mr. Nyesom Wike was governor for eight years, nobody hassled him. He governed Rivers State like an emperor, he did not show any iota of respect and regard to anyone, not even those who imposed him on Rivers people in 2015.
Chief Clark concluded by reiterating his call for President Tinubu’s swift intervention, stating, “President Tinubu must act fast and avert the unfolding crisis in Rivers State in the interest of his administration, the nation’s democracy, and the Country at large. A word is enough for the wise.”