Elder statesman Edwin Clark has written to President Bola Tinubu, seeking his intervention over the lingering crisis rocking Rivers State.
Worried by the situation, Clark urged the President to act decisively and uphold his democratic principles to restore peace in Rivers State and address security challenges elsewhere in the country.
In his letter dated June 25, he warned that Wike’s loyalty is only to himself and that his actions may undermine the President’s efforts to resolve the crisis.
“Mr. President, you can see clearly the wicked and mischievous confession of your Minister Nyesom Wike sabotaging the democratically elected Governor of Rivers State and his legitimate administration in order to bring down the government because he wants to be the leader and continue maintaining his structure in Rivers State,” he stated.
“Nyesom Wike has definitely danced naked in the market with one leg in PDP and the second leg in APC, using the two legs to create crisis and insecurity in his own State, Rivers State and it may be too late for Mr. President to discover him.
“Mr President, even though you trusted Nyesom Wike to the extent of appointing him as Minister of FCT, you did not really know who Nyesom Wike is.
“Wike is only loyal to himself and nobody else, irrespective of his feigned allegiance. He may kowtow and genuflect before a political leader, as he is currently doing in Abuja, but once he can no longer use you, he goes into a fit of incoherent vituperative verbal assault, denigrating his benefactors.”
See the full statement below:
June 25, 2024
His Excellency,
Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR,
President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces,
Federal Republic of Nigeria,
State House,
Abuja.
My Dear President,
CHIEF CLARK BESEECH PRESIDENT BOLA AHMED TINUBU TO HALT THE THREATENING POLITICAL CRISIS IN RIVERS STATE
I wish to congratulate you for your prompt action taken by the Presidency to douse the political tension in Rivers State. Mr. Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser on Media to Mr. President disclosed the President’s position during an interview on TVC on Saturday, 11th May, 2024. And it has been warmly received by Nigerians particularly in Rivers State. The crisis is no doubt will gradually died down if the statement is upheld by the Presidency, and it will enable us to face the security problem in other part of the country.
According to the Presidential media aide, Ajuri Ngelale, he said, “I believe that anyone who believes that by their actions, whether it’s from the federal level, state level or the legislative branch in the state or the legislative branch in the state or the executive branch in the state, if they are banking on Mr. President to take sides on this matter, they are mistaking and they will be disappointed”.
I am now 97 years and by the grace of God while I may be in my last journey, I have therefore deliberately decided to address the Rivers State issues historically, factually, and courageously without fear or favour to anyone in the interest of Nigeria as a result of your Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike’s continuous threat to remove from office the elected Governor of Rivers State. Your Excellency, you have done what was expected as the father and President of Nigeria, we are all happy to note that with the statesmanship statement from the presidency, the tension in Rivers State is gradually dying down and the peace and good governance is returning to Rivers State. Mr. President, we all know you as an experience and matured politician and historically, you have bravely passed through this way before when democracy was introduced in 1999, and therefore Mr. President, know what I am talking about.
I am confident and proud to say that I have known you for many years even though we have never work together but in our various positions, we successfully fought against anti democratic policies of President Olusegun Obasanjo’s regime between 1999 and 2007, and I developed special admiration for you when you boldly and courageously spoke against President Olusegun Obasanjo’s interference with your State Local Government system. You are therefore responsible for the growth and wealth of Lagos State today and Nigerians all over the country admire you because you never compromise your constitutional right as provided in section 5(2) of the 1999 constitution of Nigeria as amended which gave you the power and authority to manage the affairs of Lagos State because the constitution recognized the autonomy of the State and they are not subsidiary of the Federal Government. What changes now?
Nyesom Wike has deliberately made a plan with the Rivers State members of the National Assembly to stagger their thanksgiving service and reception for over a long period of time where he will always have the opportunity to criticise the government of Rivers State and harass the Governor because the Governor must accept him as a political leader of Rivers State. It must be remembered that these National Assembly members took oath of office in June 2023. A situation which we now found ourselves by Mr. President allowing Nyesom Wike to rule Rivers State from Abuja while he is no longer the Rivers State Governor and at the same time performing his job from Abuja undisturbed as Minister of FCT is unacceptable; hence we are legitimately resisting it.
Nyesom Wike and the 27 former members of the Assembly and the so called Chairman of the APC caretaker committee in Rivers State, Mr. Tony Okocha, have been issuing inflammatory and provocative statement harassing the Governor to the extent that he recently threatened to impeach Siminalayi Fubara, the Governor of Rivers State.
Another divisive and provocative statement made by Nyesom Wike was on Sunday 7th January, 2024, during his confession having hand in the impeachment of the governor, because of the governor’s hand to impeach the former Speaker and some members of the Rivers State House Assembly.
He continued his public outburst at a so called grand New Year luncheon at the banquet hall of his private residence in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Speaking on the Rivers crisis he said;
“Ask people why this matter came to this level. When people went and plotted the removal of the Speaker you think we would fold our hands to remove the Speaker an Obio/Akpor son?”
But unfortunately, he miscalculated, when he directed the Speaker, his kinsman, Rt. Hon. Martins Amaewhule and the 26 members to defect from PDP, the political party that sponsor them to the APC that does not have a single member in the Rivers State House of Assembly, gleefully singing APC song and waving APC flag. They did not realize that by their action, they automatically lost their seats in accordance with the 1999 Constitution as amended and the series of Supreme Court judgement on the same matter. The remaining four members of the Rivers State House of Assembly who did not defect also went to court. Since the former Speaker, Martins Amaewhule was also included in the defection who later became the Speaker went to court where the court confirmed his defection that those who defected including the Speaker have lost their seat in the State House of Assembly, and also approved Martins Amaewhule as the new Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly who thereafter duly informed the Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu about their decision. There is strong evidence that APC under the leadership of Tony Okocha held a very successful reception where the defected former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly were received into APC with fan fare.
