All Progressives Congress (APC) governors have thrown their weight behind Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, intensifying a bitter political crisis just as the oil-rich state gears up for the 2027 elections.
The backing has deepened fault lines within the ruling party and amplified tensions with rival political heavyweights.
Multiple sources in the APC confirmed to The PUNCH on Monday that the renewed hostilities between Wike and Fubara were ignited by some top APC governors’ decision to back Fubara’s second term bid, a development the FCT minister found galling and is bitterly opposed to.
The latest development was further compounded by the APC leadership’s endorsement of Fubara, who appeared to have endeared himself to the party’s top echelons, many of whom have been praising his projects across the state.
Trouble reportedly started when forces loyal to Wike attempted to back the erstwhile National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Samuel Anyanwu, as the next governor of Imo State without consulting Governor Hope Uzodimma.
The move reportedly infuriated Uzodimma, who is also the Chairman of the APC governors. Following the development, some APC governors reportedly began to mobilise other colleagues against the FCT minister.
“The plan is to weaken the FCT minister in his home state and reduce his influence and political power. This was further compounded by the fact that Wike is reportedly not favoured by some powerful members of the Tinubu administration. So, some APC governors mobilised their colleagues to support Fubara, and the result is what is playing out in the form of the renewed hostilities between the two men,” a senior APC official told The PUNCH on Monday night.
Another insider disclosed that Fubara had been emboldened by the promised backing of the APC governors for his re-election bid, hence his readiness to challenge the FCT minister’s political strength in the state.
Meanwhile, the APC National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru, and Wike on Monday traded words over Rivers politics and the minister’s insistence that he would not support Fubara for a second term.
Basiru, in a statement, asked the ex-Rivers State governor to resign his ministerial position and focus on what he described as his obsession with Rivers State politics.
He said he was unfazed by what he termed veiled threats from the minister, insisting that his political background had prepared him to withstand intimidation.
However, not all party leaders are aligned. Victor Giadom, the APC’s South-South vice chairman, previously suggested that Fubara’s success in the state would depend on going through Wike’s bloc, saying “Gokana is a ‘no-go area’ … nobody will challenge Wike’s influence in Gokana.” The remarks, which painted Wike as a dominant force in parts of Rivers, sparked rebuke from Basiru.
