The Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara has lauded members of the Board of Trustees (BoT) for visiting him yesterday.
The Governor noted that he doubted his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) until the visit of the BoT members in Port-Harcourt.
He said the visit allowed him to debunk rumours that he had left the main opposition party. It was the first time the highest advisory organ would visit the chapter since October last year when a crisis broke out between the Fubara and Wike camps.
The team which was led by former Senate President Adulphus Wabara, the PDP BoT members were on a fact-finding mission, following the protracted crisis between the governor and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Other members of the team include, former Acting Chairman Ahmed Makarfi, former Deputy National Chairman Olabode George and former National Secretary Dr. Okwezilieze Nwodo, who vowed to seek constitutional resolution of the lingering Rivers PDP crisis.
Wabara underlined that the party should get its affairs in order before future elections to prevent repeating its 2015 and 2019 electoral defeats. The PDP also failed in the 2023 elections.
Wabara explained the objective of the visit, stating that the BoT, as the party’s conscience, was seeking peace and togetherness in the aftermath of the Rivers PDP’s conflict.
He stated that the PDP was afraid of losing Rivers State and assured that the BoT will seek a constitutional solution to the situation. Wabara commended Fubara’s patience in the face of its leadership’s passivity during the crisis.
He said: “We have been reading all kinds of things on the pages of newspapers and the Internet, for those who are Internet savvy. But, we, as elders of this great party decided to come to hear from the horse’s mouth.
“First of all, we want to thank you for still being there because this party should not be allowed to die. And, it is for this very reason that I am thanking you, on behalf of my colleagues, and as you can see, it’s not from one geo-political zone. We are well represented nationally.
“We were scared, when we heard or read speculations, perceptions or what have you, that the party, if we are not careful, might lose Rivers State. Of course, if we loose Rivers State, Nigeria has lost its future.
“We don’t want what happened in 2015, and 2023 to repeat itself. These men and women you see here are very neutral. But as the conscience of the party, we must go by the rule of law. And anything you do, going by the rule of law, can never be wrong. It may be delayed, but it cannot be wrong.”
The Governor has said contrary to insinuations, propaganda and rumours of a proported defect, he remains a PDP chieftain.
Speaking through his Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Nelson Chukwudi, the Governor noted that Rivers was still a PDP-controlled state.
Fubara said: “I want to thank the Chairman and members of the Board of Trustees. Honestly speaking, if I was having any doubt about my membership first, of this great party, I think today, I have gotten a reconfirmation that I am still, not minding the drama around, a member of this party.
“I want to thank you for taking all the troubles to come to Rivers State to see the governor and the supporters of the party, genuinely. I need to use that word, genuinely, because we, that are here, are members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), undiluted.
“For once, I am happy to see the leaders, among whom are some founding fathers of the PDP, like Chief Bode George, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Dr Okwesilieze Nwodo, joining the delegation here to talk about the unity of the party.”
“It doesn’t matter the number of people who watered it (PDP) and it became what it is. I am happy that today, they are with us here and to discuss the issue of Rivers State.
“I want to assure members of our party, genuine members of PDP that are here with us, that this is another hope to show that our decision to stand by the party, still standing by the party, is not a wrong decision”.
Fubara added that, “the visit by the delegation of BoT is for one purpose, to ascertain what is the problem that has caused so much dissatisfaction and tearing down the party; how it started and how it degenerated to what it is today.”
The governor stated that while the BoT was seeking the truth, it was equally critical for the party organ to gather facts and remain on the right track.
