Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike, has leapt to the defence of Rivers State governor, Siminalayi Fubara, over his absence from the government house on Thursday.
President Bola Tinubu had on Wednesday, lifted the six-month emergency rule imposed on Rivers State in the wake of a protracted political crisis between Fubara and the state house of assembly.
The president asked Fubara, Ngozi Nma Odu, the deputy governor, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, who were all suspended while the emergency rule lasted, to resume work on Thursday, September 18.
However, while the house of assembly members convened the plenary, neither Fubara nor his deputy was seen in public.
On Thursday, Ibok-Ete Ibas, who had served as the sole administrator of Rivers state during the emergency rule, handed power back to Fubara, saying law and order had returned.
Hundreds of residents who trooped to the government house in Port Harcourt, the state capital, to welcome the governor were, however, disappointed.
Supporters, who arrived as early as 6 am, waited for hours expecting Fubara to resume formally and left in frustration by midday after it became clear he would not appear.
However, speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Wike said governance is not tied to sitting in an office.
“There is no law that says Fubara must resume today (Thursday). He is a governor. I don’t understand the way we operate,” he said.
“I was sworn in today, for example; it does not mean I will go to work tomorrow. You don’t know what my programmes are; you don’t know what the governor has scheduled to do; you don’t know where he is.”
The FCT minister said political officeholders could carry out official duties from anywhere.
“Governance does not mean you must be in the office governing; no, it is not true. Do you know whether he is in Abuja doing one thing or the other?” Wike asked.
The former Rivers governor also said that he spoke with Fubara on Wednesday and confirmed the governor’s itinerary.
“I spoke with Fubara on Wednesday. I told him I was leaving for Abuja last night, and he told me he was going back (to Rivers) today, Thursday,” he said.
When asked if he had reconciled with the Rivers governor after months of political hostilities, Wike said, “I don’t talk to someone who I have not forgiven.”
“The president has done a great deal for us, and peace has been restored,” Wike added.
