- The Ijaw national leader said this while intervening in the crisis between Fubara and Tinubu’s appointee, Wike, which has dogged the state in the past few months
Elder statesman Edwin Clark has disclosed the details of his meeting with President Bola Tinubu over the protracted political crisis in Rivers State.
Clark said Tinubu must not side with Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister at the expense of peace and stability in the southern oil-rich state.
He said he implored Tinubu to give Governor Siminalayi Fubara a free hand to manage Rivers state’s affairs.
The Ijaw national leader said this while intervening in the crisis between Fubara and Tinubu’s appointee, Wike, which has dogged the state in the past few months.
The crisis has divided the Rivers State House of Assembly, while many members of Wike’s camp previously appointed by Fubara have quit.
Clark said there can only be peace if Wike and Fubara concentrate on the tasks of governance in their respective domain.
“I have advised Mr President (Tinubu) again that he should leave Fubara alone to run his government, Wike should concentrate on his job in Abuja.
“Once that is done, there will be peace and stability in the state. But if they do anything contrary and there is no peace, it will affect the economy of the country,” Clark told The Punch.
The 97-year-old said elder statesmen like himself have been unable to mediate between Wike and Fubara because of the former’s insistence on controlling the political structure of the state.
“How do you bring them together? One man says I have divorced. But you are my house help. There is no way. You are my son. There is no way any outsider can accept him.
“This is because Wike does not see anything wrong with him. He believes that he is still controlling the structures in Rivers State whereas those structures have been there from governor to governor.
“They don’t belong to one person. Wike was not yet born when Rivers was created,” he said