The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said he wanted Rivers State Governor Sim Fubara to seek a second term in office, insisting that he and members of their political family still hold the governor in high regard despite their past differences.
Wike and Fubara were locked in a prolonged political crisis after the governor assumed office. However, both leaders have recently reconciled following months of tension.
During the crisis, Fubara defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) but was unsuccessful in securing the party’s governorship ticket.
Speaking during his monthly media chat, Wike recalled publicly endorsing Fubara while inaugurating the Rivers Ring Road project.
“We don’t like the truth. I flagged off the Ring Road and I said that day that if you complete this road, nobody will stop your second term. How do you endorse somebody more than that?” he said.
When asked directly whether he wanted Fubara to serve a second term, Wike responded in the affirmative.
“That’s right. You have to build a system and he’s from our political structure. There is nowhere in this world, whether in the Republican or Democratic Party, that you don’t have groups within a party. Every group will have its own leader, but that does not make you a godfather,” he said.
The FCT minister argued that, despite their political disagreement, he had nothing to lose from the crisis, while Fubara’s inability to pursue a second term represented a greater loss.
“At the end of the fight, I have not lost anything, but you have lost because your intentions were to go for a second tenure but you are not going,” Wike stated.
He maintained that he still cares about the Rivers governor and expressed disappointment that Fubara would not be contesting for another term.
“Those of us who love you, Fubara, feel so bad. If I don’t love him, why will I support him? That’s the point I’m making. Of all these things, who has lost?” he added.