Fubara Meets Tinubu, Seeks Guidance on Sustaining Rivers Peace
Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, on Monday declared that he is at peace with his political mentor and that stability has returned to the state after months of turbulence.
Speaking to journalists at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, following a courtesy visit to President Bola Tinubu, Fubara said the political feud that plunged Rivers into crisis earlier this year has been resolved.
“As far as I’m concerned, peace has been restored. Fubara and his principal are working together,” the governor said, in reference to his estranged predecessor and current FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
He explained that his visit to the President was to formally notify him of his return to office after the six-month emergency rule, which had suspended him and other key officials. “It is only proper I see Mr. President to say I’m back and resuming my responsibilities as governor. It’s a father-son discussion—thanking him and seeking his guidance to avoid a recurrence of crisis,” he noted.
President Tinubu had lifted the emergency rule on September 17, reinstating the governor, deputy governor and House of Assembly after a bitter standoff between the rival camps of Fubara and Wike. The Supreme Court had earlier described the situation as the absence of governance in Rivers, warning that the collapse of relations between the two factions had crippled state administration.
Meanwhile, Governor Fubara on Monday decried the underutilisation of Rivers’ seaports, stressing that the neglect of the Port Harcourt and Onne ports has cost both the state and Nigeria enormous economic opportunities.
Hosting a delegation of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Board, led by Chairman Senator Adeyeye Adedayo Clement, Fubara said functional seaports are vital to national prosperity. “If Onne Port were running at full capacity, the level of activity around Eleme, Tai and neighbouring areas would revolutionise Rivers’ economy. It would create jobs, stimulate manufacturing, and boost clearing and forwarding services,” he observed.
He commended the NPA Board for seeking the state government’s partnership before embarking on intervention projects, saying such collaboration would guarantee community support and sustainability. “When government is part of your programme, it means you are already on the path to success, because government represents the people,” he added.
Pledging his administration’s full cooperation, the governor urged the NPA to turn the ports into drivers of economic growth rather than “monuments of neglect.”
In his response, Senator Adeyeye assured that the NPA is committed to reviving the Port Harcourt and Onne ports. He called for the state government’s support in addressing challenges such as road rehabilitation, environmental cleanliness, illegal truck parking, and insecurity around the port corridors.
