Supporters of the suspended governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, have differed over his reconciliation with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

While some welcomed the development, others described the truce, which was mediated by President Bola Tinubu, as fragile and a surrender by the governor.

On Thursday night, the President brokered peace between Fubara and his political godfather, Wike.

The closed-door meeting was held at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in Abuja, where Tinubu hosted Wike, Fubara, and the suspended Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule, alongside a handful of lawmakers.

Truce conditions

Sources in the Presidency privy to the deal said Fubara agreed to complete his ongoing term with a promise not to re-contest in 2027.

“It was one of the issues raised. In fact, it was the main issue. He agreed to conclude his tenure in peace and leave the stage after that,” said a source.

“Yes, they reached an agreement yesternight (Thursday). The goal is for peace to return to Rivers State. But I think Fubara got the shorter end of the stick,” another source revealed.

Saturday PUNCH understands that Fubara also agreed to allow Wike to nominate all the local government chairpersons across the 23 LGAs of the state.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting at the Presidential Villa, Wike confirmed that the political rift between him and Fubara had been resolved, with both camps agreeing to end hostilities and work in unity.

“We are members of the same political family,” Wike said.

He acknowledged that the crisis had lingered for months but described the Thursday agreement as conclusive.

“Yes, just like humans, you have a disagreement, and then you also have time to also settle your disagreement. And that has been finally concluded today, and we have come to report to Mr. President; that is what we have agreed. So for me, everything is over,” he noted.

On his part, Fubara confirmed the truce, describing the development as a moment of divine intervention and a crucial turning point for Rivers State.

Fubara also pledged full commitment to preserving the unity achieved during the presidential peace meeting.

The fallout

The fallout between Wike and Fubara began shortly after the latter assumed office in May 2023.

Tensions flared in October 2023 when members of the Rivers State House of Assembly loyal to Wike initiated impeachment proceedings against Fubara.

The governor responded by demolishing the Assembly complex following a suspicious fire, relocating legislative sessions to temporary quarters.

In the months that followed, the power tussle plunged the state into a governance crisis.

In December 2023, President Tinubu intervened, facilitating a fragile truce that led to a peace deal in which Fubara conceded several political appointments to Wike’s loyalists.

However, the arrangement broke down, and the conflict resurfaced as the President declared a state of emergency on March 18, 2025.

Tinubu’s declaration suspended the governor’s executive powers for an initial period of six months, citing rising insecurity and administrative paralysis.

He then installed a sole administrator, former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas (retd.).

Meanwhile, the truce has sent a wedge between supporters of the suspended Rivers State Governor.

Concerns mainly bordered on the nature and composition of the reconciliation.

Fubara supporters reject move

A former Rivers State Commissioner for Employment Generation and Economic Empowerment, Dr. Leloonu Nwibubasa, said what transpired in Abuja was a surrender and not a reconciliation.

Speaking to Saturday PUNCH, the ex-commissioner insisted that there was no reconciliation because the governor did not go with his supporters.

He described the development as vicious, pointing out that Wike had succeeded in cowing the governor to submission.

Nwibubasa stated, “What I see is not reconciliation. What I see is a surrender. In a reconciliation, parties come with their supporters and discussions are made, concessions are made. Where Governor Fubara walked alone to the Presidency without a single of his own supporters, not his deputy, not his Secretary to the State Government, not his Chief of Staff, not his factional Speaker, Victor Oko-Jumbo, and others.

“On the other hand, Wike went with his entire House of Assembly loyalists and elders and you say they went for reconciliation. No, I think Governor Sim was called to surrender and he did.

“And the composition of that visit to Mr. President is a story itself and it tells you to what extent these very divisive and vicious Abuja politicians have gone to cow the governor into surrender.”

On the implication for the state, Nwibubasa said it was a return to the trenches.

“What it behoves for Rivers people is clear, that the political structures, economic structures and realm of leadership of Rivers State have returned to the old order,” he added.

A group, the Rivers Emancipation Movement, in a statement on Friday, said the reconciliation was not in the interest of the people of the state.

The body said any resolution that massaged the ego of “a few selfish individuals and undermined the collective interest of Rivers people will not stand.”

The National President of the group, Zoe Tamunotonye, stated that Fubara betrayed people of the state who stood by him by not carrying them along in the process.

The statement partly read, “This development marks the second Abuja-brokered reconciliation attempt. The first failed to yield any meaningful resolution or address the real causes of the political tension that has paralysed governance and destabilised peace in Rivers State.

“REM unequivocally frowns at this so-called reconciliation in its entirety. It is nothing more than a hollow, self-serving political arrangement that prioritises the narrow interests of a few political actors while completely ignoring the collective pain, sacrifices, and aspirations of the Rivers people. This is not reconciliation—it is a calculated collusion that will fail again.”

The group insisted that the truce was built on “falsehood, self-interest, and short-term political convenience,” and hence would not last.

Also, a human rights activist and political commentator, Deji Adeyanju, described the peace deal as fragile.

“Wike has proved time and again that his word holds no weight. The recent reconciliation between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and former Governor Nyesom Wike should not be mistaken for lasting peace,” Adeyanju stated.

Referencing Wike’s past political conduct, Adeyanju said, “From his vow at the PDP convention to abide by the outcome, which he swiftly disregarded, to his betrayal of Dr Peter Odili, a man he once called his political father, and his calculated political attacks on President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Wike’s pattern is clear; he honours only his own ambition.”

He warned that the reconciliation should be seen not as a breakthrough, but as a “trap.”

“Governor Fubara must prepare his mind that this reconciliation is a trap, and not a truce. Wike will not only undermine him now but will breach the agreement on purpose,” he said.

Supporters applaud truce

But the Special Adviser to Fubara on Electronic Media, Jerry Omatsogunwa, stated that the reconciliation would usher in peace and development in the state.

Omatsogunwa stressed that the emergency rule and the governor’s suspension had affected the state socially and economically.

He also stressed the need for all the parties to respect the decision of the leaders, even as he advised that the governor’s office must be respected.

He said, “So, now that the gladiators have said they are ready to sheath their swords for the peace of Rivers State, what else?

“The FCT minister was there and he said he is ready for peace. The Assembly people are also ready for peace and everybody needs to respect the decisions of their leaders so that at the end of the day, he still remain your leader.

“What we are after is anything that will bring about peace and development to Rivers State, it’s not a big task. There has been arrested development, everywhere was dirty, businesses are shutting down, no business, contractors are even moving out of sites.”

Responding to questions about fears, the aide said, though he had neither seen nor heard any, he believed the governor would be put in a situation that would make him “donate his head.”

“Our people will always say that the one who holds the head of the cutlass is the one who owns the cutlass.

“As it stands now, he is the one that holds the head of the cutlass, and he is the owner of the cutlass, he is the champion, he is the leader of Rivers State, over seven million people, and I think they need to also respect that,” he said.

Also, a former member of the House of Representatives, Ogbonna Nwuke, said Thursday’s meeting was the high point of several reconciliatory efforts championed by President Tinubu.

The former Commissioner for Information and Communications in Rivers State said Fubara did not attend the meeting with a crowd since the warring parties had all agreed “to come down from their high horses.”

He explained that such a meeting required only those directly affected, such as the FCT Minister, Assembly members, and Fubara himself.

Nwuke stated, “Very clearly, the President has been behind efforts to reconcile. Those who are following events know that right from the time Governor Siminalayi met him (Tinubu) in the United Kingdom, the President has been behind the scene pulling the strings getting the warring parties to come to the round table.

“What happened yesterday (Thursday) was the climax of all of the efforts that have been made to restore understanding, to build cooperation and also to enhance collaboration among major actors within the Rivers polity”.

Asked if he would like to see the governor’s suspension lifted and the emergency rule called off, he said the first major step to achieving that had occurred with all parties agreeing to peace.

“I’m certain the major conversations which took place are not on the table anywhere else. Only those who were in that meeting know. And I think that outside God, there is only one man who knows when this thing will be lifted. That person is the President. So, the nation is looking forward now to the President. And we believe that any moment from now the President will do what is needful,” he added. (Saturday PUNCH)