Rising political tensions in Rivers State have sparked fresh warnings that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) could face major fallout from the deepening feud between Nyesom Wike and Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
Comrade Austin Okai, a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), issued the caution during an interview on TVC News, arguing that unresolved political rivalries in Rivers State have historically spilled into national politics.
The long-running hostilities between Wike — now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory — and Fubara resurfaced after the minister reportedly vowed to frustrate the governor’s second-term ambition.
Although Fubara is now aligned with the APC and enjoys support from some senior party figures, Wike’s call for party leaders to keep off Rivers politics triggered a heated exchange with the APC’s national leadership.
Okai believes the situation could worsen unless decisive intervention comes from the presidency.
“Wike did not just attack the APC National Secretary, he attacked the NSA and all of them. For over a decade, the crisis of ruling parties usually starts from Rivers State,” he said.
He warned that the political storm could eventually engulf the APC.
“What you see happening in Rivers will consume APC except the president summons a political courage and call the FCT Minister to order. He has declared that his political survival depends on Rivers State and we don’t know the agreement between him and the president.”
Okai also suggested that Wike’s influence appears to overshadow several senior figures in government.
“Wike is talking tough even more than the APC National Chairman, NSA and the Chief of Staff to the President. Wike is talking more than the president himself,” he added.
With tensions escalating and rival power blocs digging in, Rivers State once again sits at the centre of a political storm many fear could ripple far beyond its borders — and test the unity of Nigeria’s ruling party.
