Wike Regains Control of PDP and APC in Rivers State

RYNI News | Omotayo Stephen . O
14 August 2025

In the turbulent theatre of Rivers State politics, Nyesom Wike has once again proven himself a master tactician, pulling the strings with precision to reclaim the grassroots machinery that fuels political dominance.

On Wednesday, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and former Rivers governor stood at the heart of a spectacle — the flag-off of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) campaign in Port Harcourt. The air was thick with loyalty. Party chairperson Aeron Chukwuemeke and suspended Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule, both Wike loyalists, showered effusive praise on the man they openly hailed as “leader” and “father” of the party in the state. Flanked by 26 lawmakers loyal to Wike, Amaewhule’s words underscored a political reality few now contest: the minister has consolidated his hold on both the PDP and the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), whose state chairman, Tony Okocha, is firmly in his camp.

Conspicuously absent from the day’s choreography was Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his loyalists. Their presence was reduced to a backdrop image — symbolic, yet politically telling.

Wike and Fubara’s relationship has long since collapsed into a bitter feud, splintering the legislature into rival camps and sparking a political crisis that no presidential intervention has managed to tame. The Supreme Court’s intervention earlier this year — voiding local elections conducted under Fubara, reinstating pro-Wike lawmakers, and freezing state allocations until a budget is presented to the “legitimate” assembly — shifted momentum decisively in Wike’s favour.

Once restored, the pro-Wike assembly wasted no time issuing an impeachment notice to the governor, deepening the stalemate. A pipeline explosion in the state only heightened tensions, and by March, President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency, suspending both Fubara and the legislature. The president installed retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas as sole administrator, a controversial move that drew criticism from legal and civic groups.

Ibas swiftly dissolved Fubara-era boards and commissions, installing new ones. Among them was a reconstituted Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, which moved with striking speed to fix August 30 for local elections — less than two months away.

Despite legal challenges and public protests over holding polls under emergency rule, the electoral process surged ahead. Primaries produced an unmistakable pattern: Wike’s loyalists emerged as flag-bearers not only for the PDP but also for the APC.

With both major parties’ grassroots candidates now drawn from his stable, Wike’s grip on Rivers politics appears unshakable — a dual-party dominance rare in Nigeria’s fiercely competitive political landscape.

For Governor Fubara, the symbolism is stark: the very base that fuels political survival in Rivers — the councillors, chairpersons, and ward mobilisers — is now firmly in his rival’s camp. For Wike, it is the art of political consolidation writ large, a calculated return to the commanding heights of his home state’s politics, executed with timing, loyalty, and an eye on the levers that matter most.

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