Veteran Rivers State elder statesman, Asukewe Ikoawaji, has described the ongoing political tension between Minister Nyesom Wike and Governor Siminalayi Fubara as a “family matter” within the political class, asserting that it has little to do with the people of Rivers State.

Speaking in an interview with ARISE News on Wednesday, Ikoawaji dismissed claims that the crisis reflected the will or involvement of Rivers elders or the general populace.

“This matter has nothing to do with Rivers State. It has nothing to do with the elders either. It is a political family problem. Every political family has a problem,” he said.

He explained that since 1999, the governorship of Rivers State has rotated within a specific political bloc to which both Wike and Fubara belong.

According to him, it was their inability to settle internal disputes that dragged other parties into the conflict.

“If they had chosen to settle this matter like a family matter, there would not be any issue,” he said. “Today, if you come to Rivers State, businesses are going on well. Everything is running smoothly. So where did the Rivers people come into this matter? That is the question many people are asking.”

On the broader political implications, Ikoawaji noted that similar crises stem from the overbearing influence of governors over party affairs, particularly in how they determine their successors.

“In Nigeria, every governor wants to know who he is handing over to. The party is too weak to stop this. When there’s a crisis, they refuse to resolve it,” he said.

He acknowledged that Wike refers to himself as Fubara’s political godfather, but argued that Wike had failed in fulfilling that fatherly role.

“If Wike says he is Fubara’s political godfather, then he should treat Fubara like a son. Because he has failed to do so, it looks as if there is a problem in Rivers State.”

Ikoawaji also weighed in on the controversy surrounding lawmakers who were initially said to have defected from the PDP to the APC, a matter the courts eventually resolved.

“In party politics, the party is supreme. But here in Nigeria, the party is too weak,” he said. “I’ve served as acting deputy national chairman (South) of the opposition party. When Buhari was our presidential candidate, and he went against the party’s position, we expelled him. That’s how he formed the CPC.”

He criticised the PDP for not taking decisive action when members visibly defected to the APC.

“If you look at the PDP constitution, once a man defects, the party should disown him. But up to the day of the Supreme Court judgement, the PDP never openly disowned those people. Yes, they were seen carrying APC cards on TV and the internet, but did the PDP act as it should? No.”

“To be honest, all this problem was caused by the PDP,” he added.

When asked whether he supports Wike or Fubara, Ikoawaji made it clear he was neutral.

“I am not on the side of Wike or Fubara. I am on the side of Rivers people. Both of them belong to one political family, but Rivers people are not all in that family.”

Addressing calls for a state of emergency during the height of the Rivers crisis, Ikoawaji expressed concern about the potential for violence.

“There was tension in the state. I live in Port Harcourt. If they had gone ahead with their selfish plan, many lives would have been lost,” he said.

He acknowledged that while President Tinubu has constitutional limits on declaring a state of emergency, the situation was grave.

“There is no need for war. There is no need for crisis. But when there is war, there are always stray bullets. People criticised the president, saying he had no right to intervene, but in my view, it could have prevented bloodshed.”

He noted that the issue was no longer between Wike and Fubara alone, but had shifted focus to a broader institutional breakdown.

“The real problem today is the sole administrator who is not sitting in Rivers State as an elected governor,” he remarked, without elaborating further.

Asked whether Wike remains in the PDP, Ikoawaji said there is no formal evidence of defection.

“For today, Wike is still in the PDP. The PDP hasn’t expelled him. In Wike’s own words, he said he got a letter from the PDP,” he said. “So as a politician, I can tell you that Wike is still in the PDP, and I challenge anyone in the PDP to say otherwise.”

Boluwatife Enome

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