By Stephen Angbulu
President Bola Tinubu is in closed-door talks with the Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara; a former governor of the state, Peter Odili, and other stakeholders at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
The meeting, which began Monday evening, comes after weeks of face-off between Fubara and his predecessor who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Although the agenda of the meeting was not made public, it may be connected to the December 11 episode in the political crisis where 27 out of 32 members of the State House of Assembly—known to be Wike’s loyalists—defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress.
Consequently, the legislature declared their seats vacant.
Wike himself was spotted at the State House premises earlier.
Vice President Kashim Shettima and the Rivers State deputy governor are also inside the President’s office complex as of this report.
The political crisis in Rivers State snowballed into the demolition of the state House of Assembly complex, which was earlier burnt, even as security personnel have reportedly barricaded the entrance Assembly.
The House of Representatives has also given reasons why it will not take up the functions of the Rivers State, which is currently embroiled in the feud between Fubara and Wike.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has distanced itself from the political crisis.
It denied sharing Wike’s political inclinations, saying, though a federal official, the minister’s actions are personal.
“The Federal Government never had any hand in creating that problem…It is a political problem that is brewing in the state,” Minister of Information and National Orientation Mohammed Idris told State House correspondents after briefing on the outcomes of last Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
*Text, except headline, courtesy: THE PUNCH
