Rivers Crisis: If Tinubu Does Not Stop Wike, Wike Will Stop Him - NDN

 

A prominent civil advocacy organization, the Niger Delta Network (NDN), has issued a strong political warning to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, expressing deep concern over what it described as the growing political recklessness of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and the implications for Rivers State, the Niger Delta region, and Nigeria’s democracy.

In a strongly worded press statement released on Thursday, 8th January, and made available to journalists in Port Harcourt, the group said Nysom Wike’s reckless political activities now threaten party stability, regional peace, and constitutional governance.

The group stated that Wike’s conduct has portrayed President Tinubu as a weak leader, arguing that no President should allow a serving minister to openly destabilize political institutions while remaining in government.

According to the statement, "Wike’s actions now cut across party lines. It would be recalled that his political rascality first targeted the Peoples Democratic Party,(PDP), destabilising the PDP, an action many interpreted as being in the interest of the All Progressives Congress (APC), but has now allegedly shifted focus to destabilizing the APC itself."

The group questioned whose interest Wike is truly serving, alleging that he directed his loyalists to defect to the APC in Rivers State “not to build the party but to kill the APC in Rivers State,” while also accusing him of planning to sponsor another governorship candidate elsewhere against the ruling party.

The statement further claimed that Wike has continued to assure President Bola Tinubu of political loyalty while simultaneously taking actions that undermine the party and the government. The group warned the President of the dangers that lurk in the offings against him and the APC for believing such assurances and predicted that a deeper crisis of leadership looms in Nigeria if Wike is not tamed.

Drawing attention to Rivers State, the group referenced public statements by the Vice President recognizing governors as party leaders in their states, and contrasted this with Rivers, where Wike, who is not a member of the APC, allegedly insists that Governor Siminalayi Fubara cannot lead the party.

According to the group, the ongoing crisis between Governor Fubara and the Rivers State House of Assembly, including impeachment threats, is “60 per cent caused” by the governor’s defection to the APC.

“This development shows clearly that Wike now determines what anybody does in this country, not Mr. President,” the statement declared.

The group warned that any successful impeachment of Governor Fubara, allegedly orchestrated through the State House of Assembly, could trigger widespread instability across the Niger Delta, embolden political strongmen, and deepen regional tension.

It further argued that such an outcome would signal that no governor defecting to the APC is politically safe and that assurances from the party’s national leadership cannot be relied upon.

The statement also suggested that if the PDP could restrain Wike from removing Fubara for over two years, but the APC allows him to achieve it in less than one month, it would represent a serious institutional failure with national consequences.

The group extended its concerns to the South-South political leadership, asserting that the removal of Fubara would demonstrate that Senate President Godswill Akpabio lacks political strength in the region and cannot protect leaders in the Niger Delta.

According to the statement, such a development would also indicate that Akpabio cannot safeguard political actors even within Akwa Ibom State, and should therefore focus strictly on his senatorial responsibilities in Ikot Ekpene.

Describing Wike as a “power-drunk politician,” the group warned that the removal of Fubara would embolden him to seek political dominance across other Niger Delta states.

The group concluded with a direct warning to President Tinubu, calling the situation a national wake-up call.

"If Mr. President fails to stop Wike, Wike will surely stop him. He must wake up now before Wike stops Nigeria’s democracy,” the statement said.

The press statement was signed by the National President of the Niger Delta Network , Akparawa Prince Emmanuel Sam, and the Director of Publicity, John Douglas, PhD, and was made available to journalists in Port Harcourt on 8th January, 2026.