The suspended Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, reportedly met privately with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in London.
According to The Africa Report, the meeting was held at the insistence of Governor Fubara to work out modalities for returning Rivers State to the path of peace.
This meeting would be the first since Tinubu suspended Fubara and invoked a state of emergency in Rivers State on March 18. He appointed Navy Vice-Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas as sole administrator.
A Presidential aide who was privy to the meeting confirmed that the meeting actually took place and added that it was aimed at restoring peace to the troubled oil-bearing community.
According to the Presidential aide, “The meeting was part of the efforts by the President to find a lasting solution to the ongoing political crisis in that region.”
It was also gathered that Fubara’s estranged political godfather, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, was not part of the meeting and was reportedly uneasy about such discussions taking place without him.
However, Tinubu is expected to meet with Fubara, Wike, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly to chart a lasting resolution to the political crisis in the state.
The new development comes after an earlier meeting held between Nyesom Wike and the Lawmakers loyal to him in the Rivers State House of Assembly which also took place in London.
