Wike, APC nat’l secretary clash over Fubara

By Saawua Terzungwe, Husseini Yahaya (Abuja) & Bassey Willie (Port Harcourt)

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Ajibola Bashiru, are locked in a public war of words over the politics of Rivers State, with the APC scribe asking the minister to resign from the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for allegedly meddling in the internal affairs of a party he does not belong to.

The exchange is the latest escalation in the deepening political tension in Rivers State over the re-election ambition of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, which Wike has openly vowed to block. The situation has increasingly pitched the former governor against the national leadership of the APC, which appears to be throwing its weight behind Fubara.

Wike, the immediate past governor of Rivers State and estranged political godfather to Fubara, has maintained a hardline stance against the governor’s second-term bid. In contrast, the APC’s national leadership has continued to recognise and endorse Fubara as the party’s leader in the state following his defection.

Governor Fubara defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC in December 2025, citing the need to align with the power at the centre and to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027.

In a statement issued on Monday in Abuja, Bashiru described it as improper for Wike to serve in an APC-led federal government while allegedly fomenting division within the party’s structures, particularly in Rivers State.

“My advice to Nyesom Wike is simple: he cannot sit in the Federal Executive Council of an APC government and at the same time instigate or fuel confusion within any organ or structure of our party using the leverage of that same office,” Bashiru said.

“The honourable thing for him to do is to resign his appointment as minister.”

The APC national secretary stressed that the party’s records clearly show that Wike is not a member of the APC and therefore lacks the standing to interfere in its internal affairs.

“As national secretary, I am duty-bound to protect the interests of the APC, its members and structures. My comments on developments within the party in Rivers State cannot, by any stretch, be regarded as undue interference,” he said.

Bashiru was responding to an earlier warning issued by Wike, who had cautioned him to stop meddling in Rivers State politics.

How the dispute began

The war of words followed Wike’s public warning to Bashiru on Monday to steer clear of Rivers State politics. The minister issued the warning laced with threats during a thank-you visit to Oyigbo Local Government Area, where he accused unnamed political actors of exploiting the state’s resources while speaking recklessly about its affairs.

Wike’s outburst was triggered by Bashiru’s response to comments attributed to the APC Vice Chairman (South-South), Victor Giadom, who reportedly referred to Governor Fubara as “the so-called governor” during Wike’s earlier visits to Khana and Gokana local government areas.

Giadom was also quoted as saying that Fubara could not secure a second term without Wike’s backing.

Reacting to the remarks, Bashiru said the office of governor deserved respect regardless of political disagreements. In a Facebook post on Sunday, the APC scribe described Giadom’s comments as unfortunate.

“I find it disturbing that a member of the NWC would refer to a sitting governor as a ‘so-called governor of Rivers State’. The office of governor is an exalted one and must be respected, regardless of political differences,” he said.

Wike fires back

Wike responded swiftly, declaring Rivers State a “no-go area” for political interference and warning Bashiru to learn from the experiences of others who had allegedly crossed similar lines in the past.

The FCT minister warned Bashiru and other APC leaders to steer clear of Rivers State, urging them not to take the state’s support for President Tinubu for granted.

Wike also alleged that some APC leaders had benefited from funds linked to the N600 billion reportedly left in the state’s coffers.

“If I don’t say this, let me warn those who come to Rivers State. You have heard about N600 billion, you come here, you collect, and you open your mouth to talk anyhow,” Wike said.

“I say it here: Victor Giadom, Tony Okocha, take this message, tell your national secretary to leave Rivers State alone. Go and ask those who have tried before. Don’t take our support for Mr President for granted.”

‘You can’t import PDP spirit into APC’ — Bashiru

In a sharp rebuttal, Bashiru dismissed Wike’s comments as blackmail and unfounded allegations, particularly the claim that APC leaders were scrambling for Rivers State funds, warning him not to import the PDP spirit into the APC.

Bashiru also brushed aside what he described as veiled threats, insisting that Wike was overestimating his political influence.

“He is not God. I will not succumb to cheap threats. I was part of the struggle against military rule and for democracy at a time when the likes of Wike were nowhere to be found,” he said.

He further emphasised that Wike’s support for President Tinubu did not translate into APC membership.

“Millions of Nigerians who are not members of the APC support Mr President. Wike’s support is no different. His attempt to import the spirit and culture of the PDP into the APC and destabilise our party in Rivers State will not be tolerated,” Bashiru added.

The minister is widely seen as a central figure in the crisis that has engulfed the PDP since 2023, a dispute that has fractured the party into rival factions. He has publicly stated that he will back President Tinubu’s re-election in 2027, as he did in 2023, even as he insists that he remains a PDP member despite his expulsion by a faction aligned with Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde.

APC backs Fubara

The exchange highlights the widening fault lines in Rivers State politics and underscores the uneasy relationship between the APC leadership and a key minister who remains formally outside the party despite his role in the Tinubu administration.

Over the weekend, APC National Chairman Prof Nentawe Yilwatda formally affirmed Governor Fubara as the leader of the party in Rivers State, placing the full weight of the party’s national leadership behind the governor amid the ongoing tussle with Wike.

Nentawe made the position clear during an interview on Channels Television, explaining that it is established APC policy that any sitting governor elected on the platform of the party automatically becomes the leader of the party in that state, in line with the APC constitution.

He also stated that on matters concerning party affairs and elections in Rivers State, the APC would engage only with Governor Fubara as a card-carrying member of the party, making it clear that the party would not conduct official political discussions with Wike.

The declaration came weeks after Fubara formally defected to the APC, where he was issued membership card number 001 and publicly declared himself leader of the party in Rivers State.

Wike, however, countered the claim, continuing to assert control over political structures in the state and warning against assumptions of automatic second-term ambitions. To reinforce his influence, Wike appeared at Monday’s event alongside APC state chairman Tony Okocha and PDP state chairman Aaron Chukwuemeka.

APC must hand over party structures to Fubara — Analysts

Commenting on the development, Rivers-based political analyst Comrade David-West Benewarie David said the APC national leadership must take concrete steps to hand over the party’s structures to Governor Fubara during the forthcoming congresses.

“With the forthcoming congresses at the local government and state levels, the governor, as leader of the party, will naturally have the opportunity to shape the party’s structures,” he said.

David added that while Wike remains a grassroots politician with strong local influence, his continued tours of local government areas risk stirring unnecessary tension.

“Rivers people want governance, not endless political drama,” he said, urging Wike to focus on his responsibilities as FCT minister and allow the governor to lead.

Similarly, a professor of political science and governance, Prof Kenneth Nweke, urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene and resolve the standoff.

“For me, the only person who can solve this once and for all is the President and Commander-in-Chief, Bola Tinubu,” he said.

“I do not see how the two camps can independently work for the same president’s re-election in 2027 without coordination. At the right time, the president will step in and put a stop to the infighting.”

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