Rotimi Amaechi, former minister of transportation, says he will not take sides in the rivalry between Siminalayi Fubara, the governor of Rivers, and Nyesom Wike.
Fubara succeeded Nyesom Wike, who is the current minister of
the federal capital territory (FCT), as governor in May 2023.
He was the accountant-general under Wike and had his support
during the governorship election, but both men fell off shortly after Fubara
assumed office.
The rift between Fubara and Wike has polarised the Rivers
house of assembly.
In December 2023, 27 members of the assembly loyal to Wike
defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives
Congress (APC).
Speaking when he paid a visit to Okorinama West, a leader of
the APC in Port Harcourt on Friday, Amaechi, who was also governor of the state
from 2007 to 2015, said he would not support either Fubara or Wike.
Amaechi further said Fubara is only popular because of the
public exchanges with Wike over political domination in Rivers.
“…a lot of our
supporters that can’t stand hunger have joined either Sim or Wike. I will not
join them. I will not join Sim, I will not join Wike,” he said.
“But don’t forget, they are not big without you people, I
hope you know that. No big man is big without the grassroots’ support. And if
you look at the Rivers state political followership, we have more people
singing our praises than singing even Sim.
“What Sim thinks is popularity today is because he is
anti-Wike. That is his popularity, not that Sim is the best man that has
happened on earth. It is because he is anti-Wike and it is because the state is
tired of Wike.”
Wike, who served as a chief of staff to Amaechi and
succeeded him, is also said to have built his popularity as a result of his
face-off with his predecessor.
Both politicians fell out after Amaechi defected to the APC
and supported Muhammadu Buhari for president in 2015, while Wike, a
governorship candidate of the PDP then, supported Goodluck Jonathan’s
re-election bid.
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