*Vows not to stop Rivers State lawmakers from performing their constitutional duties

*PANDEF demands public apology from Wike for alleged disparaging remarks against South-South leaders 

*Rivers SSG warns against taking Fubara’s simplicity for weakness

Chuks Okocha in Abuja, Wale Igbintade in Lagos, and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt 

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr. Nyesom Wike, yesterday surmounted the opposition by some traditional rulers of Ijaw extraction in Asari-Toru Local Government Area (LGA) of Rivers State, and attended a grand reception organised in his honour by his loyalists in Abalama community where he declared that he was misquoted in the statement he made about the Ijaw ethnic group.
The former Rivers State governor also declared that he would not stop the Rivers State House of Assembly led by Martins Amaewhule, from performing its constitutional functions in the state, apparently referring to the alleged plot to impeach Governor Siminalayi Fubara, who is an Ijaw.
This is just as the Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has demanded a public apology from Wike for what the group described as his shocking and unacceptable verbal attack on the South-South leaders.
Meanwhile, the Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG), Dr. Tammy Danagogo, has stated that Fubara’s calm and peaceful approach to governance should not be mistaken for weakness.
In a failed bid to stop yesterday’s grand reception organised for Wike, the Eastern Zone of the Ijaw Youth Congress (IYC) had scheduled an emergency meeting at the same Community Secondary School field, Abalama, the venue of the reception.
Following this development, the Forum of Traditional Rulers of Kalabari Ethnic Nationality had in a statement by the seven Kalabari traditional rulers led by HRH King Lawrence O. O. Odum (Odum Barboy IX), Amanyanabo of Bakana and Chairman, Degema Area Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs, urged Wike’s loyalists and the IYC to relocate their events outside Kalabari land.
THISDAY gathered that as the event was about to commence, Kalabari women in their black attires, blocked the entrance of the community, insisting that they did not want the minister, whom they claimed insulted the Ijaw ethnic nationality.
The angry women vandalised giant billboards bearing the pictures of Wike. The billboards were erected at the junction leading to the community.
The women were dispersed with teargas by policemen.
However, the protesting women could not interfere with the event, as over 100 security operatives, including soldiers, policemen, and the operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) provided tight security.
Speaking during the civic reception organised in his honour by some Ijaw stakeholders under the aegis of “New Associates”, Wike, who said he would not stop the state lawmakers from performing its constitutional functions, accused the SSG, Danagogo of instigating the issue that led to the ongoing political crisis in the state.
The minister said he foresaw the current political crisis in the state and had advised his successor, Governor Fubara from taking that route but he refused and surrounded himself with people who were ‘ingrates’.
He said: “I heard some people say I won’t come here. Who are they and how many are they? What you have done today is to tell the world all this noise on the radio is not the real thing. If you are of the Kalabari and the Ijaw nation and you are receiving me today, God will continue to bless you. I will continue to stand by you and to support you.”
He explained that some persons had misunderstood and misinterpreted his recent interview on Ijaw but clarified that he only meant that an Ijaw man (Fubara) becoming a governor in Rivers was made possible by an agreement to work together.
He said that when the decision for the emergence of his successor was being taken, Fubara had declared that he was not interested and urged the stakeholders to give the governorship ticket to his then Commissioner for Finance, Isaac Kamalu.
He said: “What I said in my interview, people will want to misinterpret it.  I want to repeat what I said. I said we are all working together. If we didn’t work together, it would have been difficult to produce the governor. That was what I said. Chief Alabraba did not allow me to rest; he nearly fainted when we were deciding who would be governor. 
“Nobody should associate anything evil with Ijaw. Ijaw people are not evil people. You cannot be saying ‘I will blow the pipeline.’ No! Engage people intellectually and diplomatically and you get what you want. In the world we are in today, we have passed the stage of threatening people.”
He said: “They told you to seize Assembly members salaries and allowances for more than one year. They have no income to feed their families and pay their children’s school fees. And you were jubilating and people were encouraging you and telling you that nothing would happen,” Wike said. 
“Who started this problem? SSG lured his brother’s judge to give an ex parte order that the government could present a budget to three or four people. The secretary is Danagogo; the judge who gave the order is Danagogo. Look at how people can destroy a state,” Wike alleged. 
Wike vowed to support the reelection of President Tinubu and wondered what would have become of his team if the president had not given him the ministerial position.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the occasion, Chief Ferdinand Alabraba, praised Wike for his political sagacity and his love for the Ijaw people. 

Rivers SSG Warns against Taking Fubara’s Simplicity for Weakness

Meanwhile, the SSG, Danagogo has warned that Fubara’s calm and peaceful approach to governance should not be mistaken for weakness.
Fubara’s opponents had criticised Danagogo’s role in Fubara’s administration, particularly his decision to sign the letter inviting lawmakers for a meeting with the governor.
Wike had described Danagogo’s letter as “useless”.
But speaking with journalists during the inauguration of Okrika Grammar School in Okrika, Danagogo argued that there was nothing wrong with the SSG writing a letter for an informal meeting.
He clarified that such communication was within his official responsibilities and not an overreach of his position.
Danagogo, a lawyer from the Kalabari region, who also served as SSG during Wike’s second tenure, commended the governor for his restraint in the face of provocation, particularly the recent incident where the state assembly complex was locked, preventing him from presenting the budget.
He remarked that some past governors in similar situations might have resorted to drastic measures, but Fubara chose to maintain order.
According to him, Governor Fubara’s reluctance to escalate tensions is rooted in his desire to avoid policies that could impoverish the citizens.

PANDEF Demands Public Apology from Wike

In another development, PANDEF has demanded a public apology from Wike for his shocking and unacceptable verbal attack on the region’s leaders.
In a statement issued yesterday, the National Chairman of PANDEF, Ambassador Godknows Igali, alleged that during a media chat on March 12, 2025, Wike publicly insulted PANDEF and its leadership, describing the organisation as “the worst ever” and falsely alleging that its members visited President Bola Tinubu merely to seek financial favours.
”Even more disgraceful were his derogatory remarks about the late Chief Edwin Clark, a national icon and founding father of PANDEF, and his disrespect towards King Alfred Diette-Spiff, the former Military Governor of Rivers State and PANDEF’s Board of Trustees Chairman,” Igali said.
According to the PANDEF chairman, ”this blatant disregard for the South-south leadership is not only an affront to the elders of the Niger Delta but also a direct insult to President Tinubu himself, who formally recognised and honoured these leaders during their engagement at the Presidential Villa on March 11, 2025.”   
Igali said that Wike must apologise as his utterances amount to ”disrespect to Niger Delta leaders and elders”.
”PANDEF has been at the forefront of peace and reconciliation efforts in Rivers State and the broader Niger Delta. President Tinubu personally tasked PANDEF with mediating conflicts and ensuring long-term stability in the region. Wike’s reckless statements jeopardise this process and could fuel tensions instead of fostering unity.
PANDEF called on President Tinubu to ensure that Wike apologises and upholds respect for the leaders the president himself recognised and honoured.
The group insisted that the president must make it clear that such reckless disrespect will not be tolerated in his administration. 
According to the group’s national chairman, ”failure to compel Wike to apologise would send a dangerous signal that public officials can insult and undermine the nation’s traditional institutions and elder statesmen without accountability.
”Moreover, if Wike refuses to retract his statements, PANDEF and the entire Niger Delta will view his hostility as an attack on the region itself – one that is unbecoming of a public servant from the same South-South he seeks to disparage.”

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