Public policy analyst and political communications strategist, Kenny Okolugbo, has criticised the political decisions of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, arguing that the governor made a strategic error by pursuing a second-term bid amid the protracted political crisis involving him and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE News, Okolugbo said Fubara’s decision to obtain a governorship nomination form ahead of the 2027 election contradicted what he described as an existing political understanding reached during reconciliation efforts aimed at resolving the Rivers crisis.
According to him, the governor ought to have exercised greater political caution and prioritised sustaining the fragile peace that emerged after several interventions by President Bola Tinubu and other stakeholders.
“Where I think Fubara got it wrong was that he should never have bought the nomination form. Wike already made it very clear there was an agreement and yet every time an agreement was reached, it looked like he was breaking it,” Okolugbo said during the television programme.
The analyst further contended that some of the governor’s advisers failed to provide the political guidance required to navigate the crisis, insisting that dialogue and strategic compromise would have served Fubara better than open confrontation with entrenched political interests in the state.
Okolugbo also pointed to the influence Wike continues to wield within Rivers politics, maintaining that any sustainable resolution of the crisis would require accommodation and negotiation among key actors rather than prolonged political battles.
His remarks come days after Governor Fubara formally withdrew from the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship primary election, stating that the peace, stability and unity of Rivers State were more important than personal political ambition.
The governor pledged to support whoever emerges as the party’s candidate for the 2027 governorship election.
The Rivers political crisis, which has dominated national discourse for more than two years, has revolved around a fierce power struggle between Fubara and his predecessor, Wike, leading to repeated reconciliation efforts and deep divisions within the state’s political establishment.
