President Bola Tinubu has once again stepped in to stop the growing conflict between Siminalayi Fubara, the governor of Rivers State, and Nyesom Wike, his predecessor and estranged godfather. The state was on the verge of governorship impeachment, legislative gridlock, and protracted instability following months of unsuccessful settlement negotiations. The president had earlier mediated a shaky peace between Fubara and Wike in December 2023, but it quickly collapsed, prompting Tinubu to declare a six-month emergency rule in the state on March 18, 2025, and suspend the governor. However, Tinubu ordered an immediate postponement of any impeachment proceedings against Fubara, subject to very severe conditions, in an effort to diffuse one of the nation's most explosive political disputes in recent years.
Tinubu, who took action shortly before leaving for an official trip to Turkey on January 26, laid down the political terms intended to restore peace between the two major political players in Rivers State, a state seen as crucial to the president's reelection in 2027, according to multiple highly placed sources familiar with the matter.
When Tinubu intervened, he sent a clear message to Fubara: Wike is still the party's uncontested leader in Rivers State, regardless of whether it is the APC or the PDP, and as such, he deserves respect.
It was gathered that the president, clearly dissatisfied with the severity of the division despite his prior efforts, cautioned that further conflicts would threaten the state's governance and cause instability, which Tinubu stated he was not prepared to tolerate.
According to reports, Tinubu explicitly instructed Wike to abandon all plans for Fubara's impeachment and to permit state governance.
Just months after the governor was sworn in in May 2023, Fubara and his predecessor, Wike, had a cat-and-mouse relationship. The governor has resisted what many see to be the FCT minister's chokehold on him, while Wike, who personally orchestrated Fubara's elevation as his successor, has attempted to control the levers of power from Abuja.
Within months following Fubara's inauguration, the relationship started to deteriorate as the governor subtly tried to show his independence, and state politicians quickly took sides. Notably, practically every state lawmaker supports Wike in the current battle.
Later, the pro-Wike faction in the House of Assembly began to try to impeach Fubara. Every time the governor and the minister dispute, the threat of impeachment looms large, despite the governor's repeated attempts to avoid the issue.
There have been numerous attempts to end the problem, but none of them have resulted in a sustainable peace. One of the peace talks ultimately failed, and the oil-rich state was placed under a six-month state of emergency thereafter.
The governor's supporters contend that a former governor who is now the FCT minister cannot manage Rivers State from outside the state, despite Wike's camp's ongoing accusations of treason and political ingratitude.
Wike is a senior statesman in Rivers politics and should be treated as such, according to the president, who also reportedly remarked that Fubara should respect elders. According to one of the individuals, Tinubu clarified that personal differences could not be used as an excuse to avoid political seniority.
Citing his primary concern for Rivers State stability, the president instructed Wike and his team to immediately stop any impeachment-related actions against Fubara as part of the peace agreement.
Fubara was told to make major compromises in exchange. The most important of these was Wike's official designation as Rivers State's "political leader", with ultimate power over party affairs. According to sources, Tinubu emphasised that Wike must be given the final say in any internal party conflicts in the state.
