Aug 4, 2026

Wike Blocks Fubara Re-Election Bid Over Rivers Cash Cow for Senior Lawyers

By Afolabi Olaiya Idowu in news

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Abuja, Nigeria – August 4, 2026—Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike has revealed that he opposed Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s bid for a second term because the state had become a “cash cow” for some senior lawyers and external forces seeking to undermine his political influence.

Speaking during his monthly media chat with journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, Wike said certain individuals who initially opposed Fubara’s emergence later drew close to the governor with the aim of making Wike and his allies politically irrelevant in Rivers.

“This Cash Cow Must End Now”

Wike alleged that some Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), whom he claimed had once been close to the government, began giving Fubara what he described as “wrong advice.”

“There are those who see Rivers State as a cash cow,” the minister said. “There are people, even some Senior Advocates of Nigeria, who you would never believe can play that kind of role, who were virtually living with us in government. But overnight, they somersaulted and started giving the governor wrong advice.”

He claimed the lawyers were enjoying privileges such as private jets and sought to maintain their influence by keeping Fubara in office under their control.

“We said no, this cash cow must end now. You won’t have it again. Take as much as you can, but you have to stop,” Wike declared.

External Forces and Political Survival

According to the former Rivers governor, the decision to block Fubara’s re-election was also driven by fears that external interests wanted to hijack the oil-rich state.

“There are external forces who want to hijack Rivers State. Should we allow them to hijack Rivers State?” he asked. “If we allow this guy now, there are those who are here who want to see that we are no longer politically relevant.”

Wike insisted he had nothing to lose from the prolonged political crisis that rocked the state, while Fubara had lost the chance to seek a second term.

“At the end of the fight, I have not lost anything. What have I lost? Nothing. But you have lost because your intention was to go for a second term, and you are not going,” he said.

From Godfather to Estranged Ally

Wike, who governed Rivers from 2015 to 2023, was instrumental in Fubara’s emergence as his successor.

Their relationship, however, soured shortly after Fubara assumed office, sparking a bitter power struggle that included repeated impeachment threats against the governor, a six-month state of emergency declared by President Bola Tinubu, and Fubara’s eventual defection from the PDP to the APC.

Fubara later withdrew from the APC governorship primary and has since publicly returned to the political fold associated with Wike’s Rainbow Coalition.

Wike maintained that his stance was motivated by concern for the governor, stating that those who truly loved Fubara were the ones who felt compelled to intervene.

As the 2027 elections approach, the FCT minister’s latest comments have once again placed the complex and turbulent politics of Rivers State under the national spotlight.