Port Harcourt – The political landscape of Rivers State has shifted decisively in favor of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, after his allies secured a landslide victory in the state’s local government elections.
The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) on Sunday declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner of 20 out of the 23 local government chairmanship seats. The ruling party in the state, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to which Governor Siminalayi Fubara belongs, won only three.
The outcome is widely seen as a demonstration of Wike’s enduring grassroots control, reasserting his influence after a protracted political feud with his successor, Governor Fubara. Notably, the APC’s victory included wins in the political strongholds of both men: Wike’s Obio/Akpor LGA and Fubara’s Opobo-Nkoro LGA.
An analysis of the winners shows that victorious candidates from both the APC and PDP are predominantly loyalists of the FCT Minister.
Election Outcome Sparks Controversy
The poll has been met with sharp criticism. Former Vice President and PDP stalwart, Atiku Abubakar, condemned the exercise, calling it “an awful absurdity and a travesty to the very notion of elective democracy.”
In a post on social media platform X, Atiku accused the APC-led federal government of throwing “caution to the wind to achieve an inordinate political advantage.” He urged Nigerians and the international community to take note of what he termed a “dangerous curve” under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Atiku further called on opposition parties in Rivers State to reject the election results, stating that the government that conducted it “is extraneous to our laws, with absolutely no legitimacy.”
He expressed solidarity with the people of Rivers State, whom he said are “victims of political brigandry.”
The results solidify the current power dynamics in the oil-rich state, suggesting that the political machinery remains firmly under Wike’s influence despite Governor Fubara’s incumbency.
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