The All Progressives Congress (APC) has announced that it will consider the decision of Rivers State Governor, Sim Fubara, if he chooses to defect to the ruling party.
This development comes as Rivers politics takes a new turn following the reconciliation between Governor Fubara and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Background of the Crisis
Recall that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had earlier reinstated Governor Fubara after a six-month suspension and political turmoil triggered by his feud with Wike and members of the state legislature. Fubara, while speaking on the reconciliation, described it as a “turning point for stability,” noting that he was now at peace with his predecessor.
APC’s Fresh Wooing of Fubara
Despite the truce, a new battle for Rivers’ political structure has begun, with the APC actively wooing Fubara to cross over, especially after the outcome of the recent local government elections.
At the polls, the APC secured a landslide victory, winning 20 local government chairmanship seats and a majority of councillorship positions—deals that further weakened the grip of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State, once seen as a PDP fortress.
This victory has given the APC unprecedented grassroots control, positioning it strategically ahead of the 2027 general elections.
APC’s Position on Fubara’s Defection
In an interview with Punch, APC Deputy National Organising Secretary, Nze Chidi Duru, said the governor’s defection would automatically give him control of the APC’s political structure in Rivers State.
“We are not in any position to decide anything for the governor. If he considers that his interest will be better managed by our party, and he wants to come into the APC, it is for him to decide. And at the appropriate time, the APC will make a decision if he reaches out to the party,” he said.
Duru added that President Tinubu’s intervention had saved the state from collapse, stressing that Governor Fubara should now focus on governance, unity, and delivering dividends of democracy to Rivers people without distractions.
