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Wike: Now The Rein Is Gone…
W ith the humiliating defeat of one Elvis Chinda in his role as the arrow head of the ‘Bring Wike Down’ campaign, following the ruling last Monday by the Supreme Court of Nigeria, which threw out the suit he had filed to stop Nyesom Wike from contesting the 2019 gubernatorial polls in Rivers State, the coast is now clear for a less encumbered second term run in office for the governor. The last attempt to rein him in by his detractors, has been voided. Until the Monday judgement by the apex court, the moods in the camps of the opposition and Wike’s were defined by their separate expectations. In Wike’s camp for instance, there was hardly any ruffle over the outcome as the entire matter was seen as a mere academic exercise, by a desperate team of opposition sponsored political jobbers. In contrast, however, the same opposition had placed significant premium on the outcome; believing just as a drowning soul at sea clutches a straw in the hope of survival, Wike would lose and face a sudden death for his secondterm dream.
The outcome however turned out to be an anti-climax, as the SC judgement conclusively degraded their enterprise to mere wishful thinking, thereby making them lose their deposit, as gamblers would say. All that is left now, is for Elvis Chinda and his group, to lick their wounds and look up to the future; either whining ruefully with despondency, or striving to catch some of the goodwill offered by the governor, through accepting the hand of friendship he had offered all his political opponents, during his inauguration on May 29 , 2019.
With the benefit of hindsight, it should have been clear to Elvis Chinda and his co-travelers that the subject matter of the suit they pursued with so much gusto, was a wild goose chase and mission in futility. For the purpose of clarification, this particular, ill-fated enterprise of ‘Bring Wike Down’ commenced in 2015 when the said Elvis Chinda along with other co-travellers, filed a suit in court alleging the ineligibility of Nyesom Wike to contest that year’s guber polls. Following the failure of the bid at that time, the same man relaunched his agenda in 2018 at the high court. With a fresh loss at the high court, Chinda approached the Court of Appeal which granted him a favourable order. However, following a series of incongruities with his case, the matter went to the Supreme Court where the judgement of the Appeal Court was reversed, thus, giving Wike a clean bill of eligibility, to contest and run for the elections. The rest is history as Wike had since contested, won the elections and is on a steady pace into his second term of office.
Incidentally, the manifestly invidious motive behind the just failed eligibility suit against Wike revives reminiscences of the governor’s many similarly targeted battles both in courts and elsewhere that were intended to derail him, during his first term in office. Just like the current effort at scuttling his aspiration failed, the series of obstacles and proverbial ‘banana peels’ that were laid on his path throughout much of that first term could not stop him. His victories in the two terms have not only demonstrated eloquently the secure position the governor occupies in the political terrain of the Rivers State, but signpost the hope of stability in tenure, throughout the span of the second term.
It is this expectation of stability that offers so much promise for moving the Rivers State to the next level, as driven by the governor’s vison and enterprise. He had in his first term demonstrated his capacity and dexterity at delivering democracy dividends. His second term commenced with a well laid out course of action, which captures the mindset of a leader with posterity in mind. Wike, has by past record, demonstrated that he can be trusted with the task of rebuilding the Rivers State.
Yet, just as a tree cannot make a forest, the task of rebuilding the Rivers State cannot be executed by the governor alone. Governors including Wike, are not magicians but rather serve as rallying points for their constituencies with respect to articulating a common vision for their people and supervising the deployment of the common wealth of the people for the actualisation of such vision. This is where all lovers of the River State remain duty bound to rally around him for the good of all.
Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has assured members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) of his administration’s commitment to supporting and strengthening the scheme in the State.
Fubara gave the assurance last Friday at the NYSC permanent orientation camp, Nonwa-Gbam, Tai Local Government Area in the State, during the swearing-in ceremony of 2026 Batch B Stream II orientation course.
Represented by the Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Bureau, Office of the Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Promise Oguzie, the governor said the State Government would remain intentional in providing the necessary support to improve the NYSC scheme and enhance the experiences of corps members deployed to the state.
He charged the corps members to be role models and quality nation-builders in their service to the good people of Rivers State in particular, and Nigeria at large.
“I charge you to be exemplary, dedicated and committed in all you do. Take full advantage of all the camp programmes and activities to enrich yourselves”, he said.
In his welcome address, the State Coordinator of NYSC in Rivers State, Mr. Moses Oleghe, urged corps members to see their deployment to Rivers State as a “veritable opportunity to make meaningful contribution to the growth of the State in particular and Nigeria at large.”
He further charged them to serve with all sense of “integrity, discipline, and the fear of God, especially when they will be engaged as INEC ad-hoc staff that will conduct the 2027 general elections.”
A total of 3,584 corps members composed of 1,421 males and 2,163 females were sworn in by the Chief Judge of Rivers State, who was represented by Justice Godspower Aguma.
Governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, says Nigeria needs God-fearing leaders for the nation to move in the right direction and make meaningful progress.
The Governor stated this yesterday when he received in audience, the World President of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, Pastor Erton Kohler; his wife, Andriene Marques Kohler; daughter Mariana Marques Kohler and a retinue of ministers of the church at Government House, Port Harcourt.
Fubara who hailed the Seventh Day Adventist Church for its contributions to education and the grooming of future leaders in Nigeria, expressed delight that the Church had over the years, been investing in education at various levels and currently runs two universities in the country.
He commended the church for not only using its institutions to spread the gospel of Christianity but to groom future leaders for the country.
According to him, religion should not be just about defending one’s faith, but also making meaningful impact on the lives of the people.
He said that by floating these educational institutions, the church has demonstrated capacity to support Nigeria in the task of producing not only educated people but a breed of God-fearing leaders.
“Our country is where it is today because we lack the fear of God. If you have the fear of God, there should be a limit to what you can do because you understand the supremacy of God. But when God is not in your equation, you’ll go beyond the line and that is what has brought us to where we are today.
“So, I feel very happy that you are contributing to the development of our future leaders in this country. We need the right people being in the right place; prepared properly with good minds; that is what we need, not just in Nigeria but round the whole world.,” he said.
Governor Fubara further observed that the absence of God-fearing people in high places to take the right decisions that could impact positively on the society, has also given rise to other problems such as social inequality, poverty, corruption and criminality. According to him, Nigeria needs a system where the average parent could afford quality education for their children and a guarantee that upon graduation, the average child will have the capacity to compete favourably with anybody, anywhere in the world.
“If we have a situation where the little money that you’re being paid as wage can also afford you quality healthcare and after working at least for 15-20 years, you have a roof over your head, tell me why you should be involved in any kind of crime? At that point, you’ll feel secured and this attitude of insecurity about the future that leads to all the social vices we have today won’t be there,” he said.
Governor Fubara expressed appreciation to the delegation for the visit and for their prayers for Rivers State, assuring them of his continued support for their programmes in the state.
Leader of the delegation and World President of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, Pastor Erton Kohler said he was in Nigeria for a special conference of the church during which thousands of the church’s ministers will be undergoing an empowerment programme to further equip them for the task of herding their flocks and serving the society.
He expressed gratitude to the Governor for the warm reception accorded his entourage, saying the memory of the visit will linger in his mind for a lifetime.
Kohler disclosed that the Church has over twenty -four million (24,000,000) members and more than 182,000 places of worship, spread across 212 countries of the world.
The Rivers State House of Assembly has approved the 2026–2028 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) submitted by Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
This reaffirms the lawmakers’ commitment to enacting laws and taking legislative actions geared towards the overall development of the State.
The Assembly gave the approval during its Second Legislative Sitting of the Fourth Session held last Friday.
Speaking on the MTEF document during plenary, the House Speaker, Rt. Hon. Martin Amaewhule, noted that by the provision of Section 10(1)(b) of the Rivers State Fiscal Responsibility Law No. 8 of 2010, the MTEF ought to have been laid before the House in September 2025.
Amaewhule explained that traditionally, the document is expected to be presented four months before the commencement of the next financial year and immediately after the expiration of every three-year fiscal cycle.
He, however, stated that in the interest of the State and its people, the House considered it necessary to deliberate on the document, describing it as a precursor to the 2026 Budget Estimates.
The Speaker expressed concern that the year had already progressed significantly before the presentation of the framework.
During deliberations on the document, members examined the assumptions and projections contained in the MTEF and observed that strict adherence to the outlined fiscal parameters would ultimately serve the interest of Rivers people.
The lawmakers maintained that effective implementation of the framework would promote prudent financial management and enhance developmental planning across the State.
Following the debate and positive consideration by members, the Speaker put the question to the House and members voted overwhelmingly in support of the approval of the MTEF.
Meanwhile, during the same sitting last Friday, the House also received a petition from the Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Council, Dr. Gift Worlu.
The petition was presented by the member representing Obio/Akpor Constituency II, Hon. Emilia Amadi.
According to the petition, concerns were raised over an imminent security breach, threats to lives, destruction of property and alleged forceful takeover of property by some lawless persons within parts of the Local Government Area.
Presenting the petition before the House, Hon. Amadi appealed to the lawmakers to revisit the matter and take necessary steps aimed at safeguarding lives and property in the affected communities.
The House is expected to further deliberate on the petition and consider measures to address the concerns raised in order to sustain peace and security in the area.
King Onunwor
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