Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara has declared that he will not be drunk with power or allow the associated advantages and benefits that come with holding a lofty position in government to change him.

Rather, Fubara assured that he will remain committed to his vows made to the Rivers people when he got their mandate, to completely put things in place that will transform the state into becoming what they dreamt it to become.

Fubara stated this on Tuesday when some leaders, elders and critical stakeholders of the state visited him to celebrate his 50th birthday at the Government House in Port Harcourt.

The governor who explained that he had never subscribed to celebrating birthdays said seeing leaders of the state gathering to celebrate him pulled out tears of joy from his eyes.

“I want to say that I will still be the Fubara that you know; power will not change me. I will still make sure that what I hold dear in life remains, which is God and my respect for people. I will continue to maintain it.

“Power will come, power will go, but I will still remain the Fubara that you know. With your support, that Rivers State that we all yearn for, we will definitely, even if we don’t get it completely, we will put those things in place that will channel and drive us to that Rivers State, with your support,” Fubara said.

He added, “That is the only thing that I know I can assure you. I will not do anything, act in any manner that will bring disgrace to myself or to everyone of you that have decided and ready to sacrifice everything for us.

“This morning is a birthday morning. It is not a morning to discuss politics. It is a morning to say I am happy, I am 50 years, according to you. But the most important thing is, I am celebrating my Golden Jubilee. It means that I have joined the league of the old men from today.”

Fubara, on behalf of his wife, Lady Valerie and family, expressed gratitude to God for divine grace, and thanked all the leaders who made sacrifices to be in attendance so early to wish him well.

In his remark, a former Governor of the state, Sir Celestine Omehia thanked God for installing Governor Fubara who he noted to have become a deliverer of the State and its people from the hands of those he said were bent on destroying Rivers State.

Omehua said it is worthwhile to celebrate such a patient and meticulous leader, loved by all Nigerians on his 50th birthday because he has continued to prioritise the interest of the State and protect it.

The former governor recounted the strength of faith in God that Fubara has demonstrated as well as how he has enjoyed divine direction in governance.

He pledged the continued support of Rivers people to Governor Fubara towards ensuring the success of his administration.

In his speech, former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, said regardless of who a kingmaker is, as soon as the king is crowned, such person must give way to the king to perform his duties.

Secondus noted that the people of Rivers and indeed, Nigerians have come to admire and love the character of steel, fear and total trust in God that Governor Fubara has demonstrated by forging unity, and inclusivity which he said testified that his mandate is divine.

[Leadership]

Former governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has said the ruling All Progressives Party (APC) deviated from its founding mission.

Naija News reports that El-Rufai said he no longer recognizes his party. He stated that APC was created to solve a problem but that would not be possible again.

Speaking at a national conference in Abuja on strengthening democracy in Nigeria, on Monday, he said, “I no longer recognize the APC. No party organ has met in two years—no caucus, no NEC, nothing. You don’t even know if it is a one-man show; it’s a zero-man show.”

The former Minister of the Federal Captial Territory (FCT) urged Nigerians to resist incapable leaders and illiterates ascending to leadership positions.

“You cannot afford to have illiterates, semi-illiterates, and cunning people as your leaders. This is why we end up with the poor leadership we have today,” he stated.

While not proclaiming his departure from the ruling party, El-Rufai said the distance between him and APC was widening.

“The problems that led to the creation of the APC remain unresolved, but I no longer believe the APC is interested in addressing them. The distance between me and the party is widening,” he clarified.

Speaking on the challenges of the opposition parties, the former Kaduna State governor said the crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) was engineered by outsiders.

According to him, the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, told him he was worried by the crisis in LP.

“There are internal mercenaries in the PDP, hired and motivated to destroy the party. The Labour Party is also facing similar issues. Peter Obi himself told me, ‘I don’t know what’s happening in the party I contested with’,” he added.

The APC chieftain said there “seems to be a deliberate project to destroy opposition parties“.

He further warned against undermining democracy, stating that the nation would not want to experience military rule.

The immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has blasted the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, accusing the party of straying from its founding ideals and fostering poor leadership.

The ex-governor, while addressing a national conference in Abuja on strengthening democracy in Nigeria, labelled the state of governance and opposition in the country as a national emergency.

El-Rufai, who shared the report on his X handle on Tuesday, expressed concern over the absence of internal democracy and active party structures within the APC.

“I no longer recognise the APC. No party organ has met in two years—no caucus, no NEC, nothing. You don’t even know if it is a one-man show; it’s a zero-man show,” he said.

He condemned the quality of leadership emerging from political parties, blaming the situation on unqualified delegates.

“You cannot afford to have illiterates, semi-illiterates, and cunning people as your leaders. This is why we end up with the poor leadership we have today,” he added.

The former governor charged political parties to raise standards for candidates and delegates, stressing that the constitution’s minimum requirement of a secondary school certificate should not be enough for nominations.

He lamented that the APC’s founding goals of combating corruption, rebuilding the economy, and enhancing security have been abandoned.

Citing a poll that showed 75 percent of registered voters might abstain from the 2027 elections, El-Rufai warned of a potential crisis.

Reacting to El-Rufai’s post, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Public Communications and Media, Daniel Bwala, queried the former governor’s stance, asking if he would have held the same position had he remained in the government or cabinet.

“My Senior brother, if you were to be in the government and cabinet, would you have held and expressed the same position? History is replete with examples. It is a government you participated in its formation, that you now want to unseat. Haba Mallam,” Bwala wrote.

[DailyPost]

Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara said on Tuesday that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike funded the 2019 election of Bauchi state governor, Senator Bala Mohammed. 

Reacting to Bala Mohammed’s comments accusing Wike as a transactional politicians and serial betrayal, Dogara detailed how Wike, the hen Rivers State governor mandated Chief Dan Orbih to deliver the PDP governorship ticket to Bala Mohammed and helped raised the fund used for his elections. 

In a statement he personally signed, Dogara who was speaker of the 8th House of Representatives alleged that the Bauchi state governor practically knelt down before Wike in Port Harcourt to collect money for his election from Wike. 

He said: “Governor Bala Mohammed’s recent outbursts against His Excellency Nyeson Wike, the Honourable Minister of the Federal Capital Territory though not entirely surprising have only served to expand the vistas of ingratitude and treachery based on what I know.  

“As I witness this gross injustice, the questions I ask myself, are: is my comfort more important than saying the truth and is my fear of conflict worth allowing harm to go unchallenged? 

“I have learned enough over the years to know beyond reasonable doubt that in the face of situations like this, if I choose to prioritize my comfort, I will fail the victim and fail myself. This is because injustice itself is a festering wound, it only grow its worse when brushed aside.

“As someone who knows so much because I was the provocateur of the events between the two that I will speak to, I consider my silence not just cowardice but complicity. Therefore, I am not afraid to stand alone or risk conflict. 

“I should not be misunderstood to be defending Wike but simply stating the raw truth that I know and I really don’t give a damn if the truth makes Wike look good. I have learnt to say the truth as I enjoy my freedom from being a slave to human opinion. 

“For starters, need I remind Governor Bala Mohammed that in 2018 PDP Gubernatorial primaries, when we were not too sure he will win because, his then major opponent, Senator  Abdul Ningi was the one who constituted the State party structure and had a bosom friend as Party chairman, it was Wike we turned  to for help. 

“I had called Wike to plead with him to help us in Bauchi without necessarily disclosing to him that it was Bala Mohammed that we wanted delivered. His response to me, was that are you sure you are in control of the process 100 percent? I said, I wasn’t too sure and he said to me leave it to me, I will help you sort it out. 

“To do it, Wike first of all made his bosom friend and close ally, Chief Dan Osi Orbih the Chairman of the Panel for the Primaries and said I should discuss whatever I wanted with Chief Dan. 

“We got talking and on the eve of the Primaries, Chief Dan was in Benin city and we needed to get him to Bauchi for the assignment, it was to Wike that I turned to again and his response to me was, my brother, I have told you not to bother about this. Tell Chief Dan to come to meet me in Port Harcourt. I did just that and amazingly Wike provided the private jet that flew Chief Dan to Bauchi and out of Bauchi for the assignment. 

“I can say without fear of any contradiction that Wike bore all expenses for the exercise. It’s therefore shocking that this so called transactional character called Wike did not place any condition whatsoever for his support.

“That is just the beginning of the story, I hate to tell, but I must. After the emergence of Bala Mohammed as the party flag bearer and having promised to sponsor all the party candidates if he gets the ticket, we were rudely awoken to the reality that Bala Mohammed had no money for his own campaigns let alone for other candidates of the party.  

“Initially, I thought it was some kind of a funny joke but as time went, I realized to my utter bewilderment that it was true. It turned out Bala Mohammed had lied to us about his financial capacity.  

“So we had a meeting at my then residence at Wuse 2 Abuja to help raise money and we thought since Bala Mohammed was one time Minister for nearly 6 years, he must have built enough goodwill we could harness if we organised a fundraiser for him.

“A committee was put in place and we spent N20 million to organize the fundraiser at the then Lady Kwai Hall, Sheraton Hotels, Abuja. 

Before then, I had asked  Bala Mohammed to give me a list of some of the people he  had helped while he held sway as Minister for FCT.

“He obliged me with the list and after calling just four people on the list that I know so well, what they said to me jolted me and I reserve that for some other day. But suffice to say that I knew the fundraiser will be a flop. Do, I was already thinking of alternatives. 

“And as predicted, we had the fundraiser and to cut the long story short, all we raised from the fundraiser was a paltry N48 million and If you deduct  the N20 million invested in organising it, that leaves you with a net of N28m. I have the records and our stakeholders are there to bear witness to this. 

“When it was obvious the masquerade will soon turn to a human being, I told our then two serving Senators who are alive and can testify that the only option we had was to go to a friend and brother, then Governor Wike for assistance. 

“We got tickets and flew to Port Harcourt with Bala Mohammed without informing Wike that we were coming with him.  On arrival, we were ushered into the Government house and asked to take our seats and wait for the Governor who was still upstairs to join us shortly. 

“As soon as Wike walked down the stairs to join us and saw Bala Mohammed his visage changed and I noticed he was cold to me for the very first time.  He asked us to join him at the dining room for breakfast, but excused me while those on my delegation waited. What happened next was nerve raking and humbling, I must say!

“He was like, Speaker why did you bring Bala to my house without even caring to find out what our mission was.  I said to him, I thought he is your friend since both of you served in the same cabinet under President Jonathan. 

“He said to me let me tell you what you don’t know. When we were ministers, Bala Mohammed allocated plots of land to all Ministers except me. He also recalled how he humiliated him when he went to see him in his office as a colleague Minister just to get an approval to increase the number of floors on a building he had in Abuja, not to beg for plot which he refused to allocate to him. 

“He said Bala Mohammed kept him in his waiting room for hours and later sneaked out of the office. That from that day, he made up his mind never to have anything to do with him again. 

“He added, I wish, you had told me it’s Bala you were rooting for but whatever you want I will assist you guys because I don’t say no to a brother but I assure you, you will regret your decision if Bala Mohammed becomes Governor. The rest is history. 

“He said to me let’s join them at the dining so that I can confront  him with these issues for you to know that I am not making things up. We joined them at the dinning and Wike confronted Bala with these issues in the open and in our very presence. 

“Bala admitted and pleaded for forgiveness assuring that he is now a changed man. The two Senators with me that day can confirm this to anyone who wants to establish the veracity of these narratives.

“To cut the long story short, we passed the night at the Government house and the next morning Wike called and directed that his cash assistance be handed over to me to pass to Bala. I said, your Excellency, it’s better I call him so that he can collect the assistance himself least he thinks you are still angry with him. 

“I sent for Bala and when he came Wike’s aide handed over the package to him and he collected it while almost kissing the ground. Wike therefore gave us the lifeline we needed to kick start Bala’s campaigns. 

“If Bala has forgotten how much we left with that day, I will remind him. Wike didn’t stopped there, he gave us a private jet to ferry us back to Abuja. And I must add that was not the only time Wike helped  Bala with resources and logistics. 

“What is baffling is that the so called transactional Wike did not demand for anything in return nor place any condition for all that he did. Believe me this is not the end of the story but let’s leave it here.

“With all these, my question to Bala is what happens to the golden adage that you don’t attempt to break the calabash from which you once sucked honey? For Bala, power is a poison and anyone who questions how he wields it, for that reason, is an eternal heretic that must be crushed at all cost. 

“Every sane person knows that true freedom doesn’t insist on expressing itself to the harm of others especially those that stood by you in your time of desperate need. For it is not in vain that they say, “a friend in need is a friend indeed”. 

“Unfortunately, for those of us who know Bala too well, there is no room for debate about whether he is a rogue or mere scoundrel, as much as there is no debate about his moral bankruptcy, rooted in a contempt for truth. 

“His mental pathology reveals a man that harbours grand delusions to the extent that he would not recognize the truth, whether about his private or political life, if confronted by it in an identity parade. As someone who is false to his friends and neighbours, it is impossible for him to be true to the public. 

“Between Wike and Bala, Bala should be told in unequivocal terms that it is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not. It is obvious that Bala is not near anything that he is projecting to the public. 

“When Wike was his benefactor, he said he knew Wike had done better than him and referred to him as, “ someone who is courageous, focused and determined, a person qualified and competent to help salvage Nigeria”. His words not mine. 

“Now that Wike cuts off the benefits, he is a dead wood, former friend and a “transactional politician”. As a known wimp, he believes that Wike is now on the robs and he is punching so hard so that he can appropriate the glory from whatever pyrrhic victory that may ensue. 

“Is it not ludicrous for someone who is mostly disliked for no reason other than he is shady, to call someone transactional? Time will not permit me to list those Bala has betrayed which includes his known godfather and our father, Baba Waziri, Alhaji Bello Kirfi, Elder statesman and former minister under President Shehu Shagari in the second republic. 

“Bala represents everything but decency which I said before that I doubted he will ever have. Those who thought I was too harsh including an ally of Wike who pleaded  with me not to talk about Bala again are increasingly noticing this. 

“I am sure they are now convinced that we cannot continue to run a therapy session for a troubled pyromaniac nay reptilian brat like this who consistently seeks to elevate himself by putting others down and who inhales rather than think before he talks. 

“After all, it was saint John Chrysostom who said, “we must not mind insulting men, if by respecting them we offend God”. 

[TheNation]