Former Governor of Rivers State and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has publicly described his erstwhile political protégé, Siminalayi Fubara, as immature, dismissing recent insinuations from the governor that some Rivers politicians were quietly supporting President Bola Tinubu. Responding to a new political chant by Fubara calling on supporters to “no dey follow corner-corner” in backing Tinubu, Wike retorted that he does not engage in clandestine support and that all of Nigeria already knows him as the “number one supporter” of the president.
The trigger for the retort was a political song led by Governor Fubara at a recent gathering of state supporters. At that event, the governor used the chorus line “If you dey follow Tinubu, no dey go corner-corner” while urging supporters of the president to declare their loyalties openly. The song was deployed as a rhetorical jab aimed at the FCT Minister, basically accusing him of back-channel manoeuvring. Rivers State has been a bedrock of a deeply polarised political crisis that brought the state to the brink of constitutional breakdown, prompting a federal emergency intervention, and has continued to generate public and private recriminations even after efforts at reconciliation.
The political alliance between Wike and Fubara began in earnest during the run-up to the 2023 Rivers State governorship election, where Fubara emerged as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to succeed Wike, who was then concluding his second term as governor. At the time, Wike was widely seen as the chief architect of Fubara’s nomination and electoral victory, positioning the latter as his political heir in a state long considered a Wike stronghold. Fubara won the election convincingly, garnering more than 60 percent of the vote.
However, the veneer of unity quickly collapsed after Fubara’s inauguration in May 2023. Within months, the two men fell out, triggering a bitter internal crisis within the Rivers State PDP. The conflict centred on control of the local party apparatus and the State House of Assembly, where 27 lawmakers loyal to Wike defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), further deepening the political schism. Efforts by Fubara to neutralise the faction loyal to Wike and assert his authority were met with fierce resistance and accusations of constitutional violations.
In March 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State due to escalating political instability and suspended Governor Fubara, his deputy, and the entire Rivers State House of Assembly. A retired Vice-Admiral, Ibok Ekwe Ibas, was appointed Administrator to oversee the state’s affairs.
The state of emergency was lifted in September 2025, and the reinstated political actors, including Fubara. Following intense negotiations mediated from Abuja, the federal government tried to reunite the camps. A reconciliation framework was reportedly drawn up that included mutual recognition of political structures and a planned normalisation of governance procedures.
However, subsequent developments, such as defections of political blocs and the governor’s later realignment toward the ruling APC, strained the truce. In recent remarks, Wike warned that simply backing the president’s re-election bid would not guarantee any politician, including Fubara, a ticket or automatic political reward.
Samuel Aina