The Rainbow Coalition, led by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, Chief Nyesom Wike, has set up a committee to integrate the loyalists of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara into its fold.

It was reported that the move was informed by the governor’s recent decision to join the coalition and support all its candidates ahead of the 2027 general election.

Fubara had also directed all his loyalists to follow a similar path, a development that prompted key supporters of the governor to express interest in joining the coalition.

Fubara’s key loyalists, who recently indicated interest in joining the governor in the coalition, included his former Chief of Staff, Edison Ehie; Chijoke Ihunwo; and Ezebunwo Ichemati, who were sacked as local government chairmen of Ikwere and Port Harcourt City by the Supreme Court.

In a recent interview, Ihunwo said his decision was based on the governor’s directive, recalling that Fubara had announced his return to the coalition and advised his loyalists to do the same.

He said all Fubara’s loyalists, including Ichemati and Ehie, had decided to obey the directive of their principal.

He said, “The governor has called us and told us that he had gone back to the Rainbow Coalition and that every other person should join him. I am not a desperate person. Once your principal gives directives, you follow whatever he has said.

“Nobody deceived the governor. I am 100 per cent loyal to the governor. I had a personal relationship with him earlier before he became the governor. Whatever directives he gives I will follow.

“I am a member of the APC, and the governor is a member of the party. The governor has said that we are supporting all the candidates of the Rainbow Coalition, and you don’t expect me to be a dissenting voice against my principal. I won’t do that.

“Whatever my principal directs is what I am going to do. I am supporting the Rainbow Coalition. Edison Ehie, Ichemati, and Promise Reginald are all members of the coalition because the governor has given the directive.”

Some leaders of the coalition were said to be uncomfortable with having Ehie and Chijoke in their midst, especially as the duo were reportedly seen as the key engineers of the crisis that rocked the state.

Some of the leaders had openly called on the duo to tender unreserved apologies to Minister Wike and key members of the coalition following the roles they played during the crisis.

But Wike said that the committee headed by former federal lawmaker Senator Magnus Abe had been set up to meet with Fubara and fashion out the best way to integrate his loyalists.

Speaking during his monthly media chat with journalists in Abuja, Wike said the committee would discuss how Fubara had already given the committee a date for the meeting, describing it as a sign of progress for the state.

The Chairman of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Rivers State Chapter, Nwisabari Bani Samuel, was among coalition members who called on Ihunwo to apologise to Wike.

He also challenged Ihunwo to dissolve a faction of the NYCN linked to him in the state to demonstrate his sincerity.

The chairman recalled that the council was ridiculed and attacked by persons loyal to Fubara’s key supporters who were backing the coalition during the crisis.

He said, “Today, if Mr Chijioke Ihunwo has truly realised himself and aligned for peace, a position he once criticised, we welcome him. However, true reconciliation demands more than a change of political alignment. It requires accountability, sincerity, and restitution.”

“If Mr Chijioke Ihunwo has sincerely embraced peace, then the honourable course of action is clear. He should publicly acknowledge his past actions, tender an unreserved apology to the political leadership of Rivers State, and demonstrate genuine repentance through concrete actions”.

The Rainbow Coalition Is seen as the largest unique political movement founded by Wike to deliver President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other candidates of interest across party lines in the 2027 general elections.

Currently, the coalition comprises the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party (L’), and the Action Alliance’(AA), along with all their political structures in Rivers. (The Nation)